Black History 101

I Started That

100

This person invented a machine, called a "lasting machine," that stitched the leather of shoe to its sole.

Jan Metzeliger

200

This person started a newspaper called "The North Star."

Frederick Douglass

300

A Harvard graduate, this person played a role in starting the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

W.E.B. Dubois

400

This person refused to give up a seat on the bus. This led to a 382-day bus boycott by black people in Montgomery, Alabama.

Rosa Parks

500

Many consider this fur and grain trader to be the founder of the city of Chicago.

Jean-Baptiste-Point DuSable

I Was The First

100

The president named this person to be the first African American to hold a seat on the Supreme Court, the highest court in the land.

Thurgood Marshall

200

This former coal mine worker born to former slaves got a degree from Harvard University and started what is called today "Black History Month."

Carter C. Woodson

300

This person started the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute in Alabama where black children could learn skills such as shoemaking and farming.

Booker T. Washington

400

This person was the first black congresswoman to be elected from the Deep South. 

Barbara Jordan

500

In 1870, this person was the first black to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Joseph Rainey

Play That Funky Music

100

This person's given first and middle name at birth were "Edward Kennedy."

Duke Ellington

200

This person, a well-known trumpet player, was known by the nickname "Satchmo."

Louis Armstrong

300

This person sang in church choirs while growing up as the granddaughter of two Methodist ministers.

Leontyne Price

400

This person, who was a famous writer of piano music, was known as the "King of Ragtime."

Scott Joplin

500

This person served three years in reform school for attempted burglary before writing many famous rock-and-roll songs.

Chuck Berry

I'm An Athlete Man

100

This person was the world heavyweight boxing champion from 1937 to 1949.

Joe Louis

200

This person attended the University of California on a tennis scholarship.

Arthur Ashe

300

In this person's performance at the 1936 Summer Olympic Games made him famous.

Jesse Owens

400

This person, the child of a runaway slave, was a football All-American and well-known actor and singer.

Paul Robeson 

500

In 1962, this person became the first black player inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Jackie Robinson

I Be Politicing

100

This person worked in childcare center before becoming a well-known political figure.

Shirley Chisholm

200

A Nation of Islam minister at one time, this person was assassinated while giving a speech in 1965.

Malcolm X

300

This person helped register black voters in Mississippi and led boycotts there of firms that practiced racial discrimination.

Medger Evers

400

This civil rights advocate told her life story in the book A Colored Woman in a White World.

Mary Terrell

500

This person was a teacher in Mississippi before she became a well-known journalist.

Ida Wells Barnett