Black - African American History Facts

Purdy and Sadgwar, inventors, patented the Folding Chair on this date in 1889. Patent # 405,117.

Hazel Dorothy Scott, famed pianist and singer, was born in Trinidad on this date in 1920. Scott is famous for her use of "swing" in classical music.

Amalya Lyle Kearse, the first woman to be appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals, was born in Vauxhall, NJ, on this date in 1937.

Governor George C. Wallace of Alabama failed to stop the court-ordered integration of Alabama University by refusing admittance to two Black students (Vivian Malone and James Hood) on this date in 1963. Malone and Hood were escorted by the National Guard as they entered the university.

Earl Shinhoster, NAACP Director of Voter Empowerment died in a traffic accident in Alabama on this date in 2000. He served as acting Executive Director and CEO of the NAACP from February 1995 to February 1996.