Medical & Scientific Breakthroughs
Film and Television
Famous Inventors & Innovations
MILITARY
Literary & Artistic Giants
200
He is known for organizing the first large-scale blood bank system during WWII.
Who is Dr. Charles Drew?
200
He was the first African American to win the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field.
Who is Sidney Poitier?
200
In 1923, this man patented the three-position traffic signal, improving road safety.
Who is Garrett Morgan?
200
This prominent abolitionist, who served as a nurse, scout, and spy for the Union Army, is famously associated with the Underground Railroad.
Who is Harriet Tubman?
200
The singer known as the “queen of soul” recorded hits like “respect”
Who is Aretha Franklin?
400
He was the first African American to perform one of the first successful open-heart surgeries in 1893.
Who is Dr. Daniel Hale Williams?
400
This filmmaker, known for Do the Right Thing, has the real name of Shelton Jackson Lee.
Who is Spike Lee?
400
She became the first Black female millionaire by inventing a line of hair care products in the early 1900s.
Who is Madam C.J. Walker?
400
This all-Black fighter pilot group served with distinction in World War II.
Who are the Tuskegee Airmen?
400
He wrote the autobiography Notes of a Native Son.
Who is James Baldwin?
600
The name of the shuttle that put the first African American, Guion Bluford, in space August 30, 1983.
What is the STS-8?
600
He directed the first superhero film nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, and became the first Black director with four films grossing over $100 million domestically (Creed, Black Panther, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Sinners).
Who is Ryan Coogler?
600
Known for his work with Thomas Edison, he invented the carbon filament for the incandescent light bulb.
Who is Lewis Latimer?
600
During the Civil War, he became the first Black American to hold the rank of Major.
Who is Martin Delany?
600
He was a key figure in the Harlem Renaissance and wrote the poem "The Weary Blues".
Who is Langston Hughes?
800
He invented control devices for guided missiles and the control unit for the pacemaker.
Who is Otis Boykin?
800
She was the first African American woman to win an Oscar for Costume Design for her work in Marvel's Black Panther.
Who is Ruth E. Carter?
800
He invented the "Jenny Coupler" in 1897, a device that allowed train cars to hook together automatically.
Who is Andrew Jackson Beard?
800
This woman was the first Black female general in the U.S. Army.
Who is Hazel W. Johnson-Brown?
800
nown as the "Queen of Jazz," this singer was famous for her scat singing.
Who is Ella Fitzgerald?
1000
She was the first African American female astronaut to travel into space in 1992. She’s also a trained physician dedicated to improving global health. Joining the Peace Corps in 1983, she worked as a medical officer in Africa
Who is Dr. Mae Jemison?
1000
In the 1968 Episode “Plato’s Stepchildren” she went where few women had gone before, one of TV’s first Interracial kisses.
Who is Nichelle Nichols?
1000
She was one of the African American "human computers" at NASA whose calculations were critical to the success of U.S. manned spaceflights.
Who is Katherine Johnson?
1000
He was a brilliant Haitian general and leader of the Haitian Revolution, the only successful slave revolt in history.
Who is Toussaint Louverture?
1000
She wrote the critically acclaimed novel Beloved and won a Pulitzer Prize.
Who is Toni Morrison?
