Black History Firsts
Who was the first recorded African child to be born in the U.S colonies in 1624?
William Tucker
Who became the first African American to serve in the U.S. Supreme Court?
Thurgood Marshall
Who was the first black artist to win a Grammy for Album of the Year?
Stevie Wonder
Matthew "Mack" Robinson, who set an Olympic record in the 200-meter dash in 1936 but earned the silver medal after finishing behind Jesse Owens, was related to whom?
Jackie Robinson
Who created a line of haircare products for African American women, leading her to later become the first female African American self-made millionaire?
Madam C.J. Walker
In the 1770s, who created the first school for African American children?
Anthony Benezet
Who was the creator of Black History Month? He is often referred to as the “Father of Black History".
Carter G. Woodson
Who was the first black woman to win an Oscar?
Hattie McDaniel
In 1908, after winning the 4 x 400 meter relay, who became the first African American to win gold in the Olympics?
John Taylor
Who was responsible for creating over 500 new products made from peanuts and sweet potatoes, including cooking oils, paint, and soap?
George Carver
What was the first U.S colony to ban slavery in 1777?
Vermont
Who was sworn in as the first Black U.S. senator in 1870?
Hiram Rhodes Revels
Who was the first African American to host a TV show on NBC in 1956?
Nat King Cole
Between 1810-1850, how many slaves used the Underground Railroad to escape to the North?
100,000
Who became the first Black person in space in 1983, and would spend 688 hours there over the course of his career as an astronaut?
Guion Bluford
Who was the first African American person to earn a medical degree? He also started the nation's first pharmacy under Black ownership and was the first African American to have their work published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.
James McCune Smith
Who was the oldest living Buffalo Soldier?
Sergeant Mark Matthews
Who was the first black man to win an Oscar?
Sidney Poitier
Who started as a freshman at Morehouse College at the young age of 15?
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Who assisted with the 1995 creation of Shockwave, an essential technology that led to the development of web animation? (So we have her to thank for GIFs.)
Lisa Gelobter
After graduating from Oberlin College in 1850 with a literary degree, who became the first Black woman in America to earn a four-year college degree?
Lucy Stanton
Who became the first African American lawyer in the state of Ohio?
John Mercer Langston
Who was the first African American to publish a book of poetry in 1773?
Phillis Wheatley
The theme song to public television’s popular children’s program, Reading Rainbow, is sung by who?
Chaka Kahn
Who was the first black woman to receive a medical degree in the U.S.?
Rebecca Lee Crumpler