Anna Maria Weems: Escaped from the Maafa disguised as a male carriage driver
In 1855, Anna Maria Weems escaped to freedom disguised as a man named “Joe Wright.” This fifteen-year-old girl had been planning her escape for two years,...
Category : Herstory
Augusta Savage: African-American Sculptor
“I have created nothing really beautiful, really lasting, but if I can inspire one of these youngsters to develop the talent I know they possess,...
Marian Anderson: Legendary African American Contralto
“Everyone has a gift for something, even if it is the gift of being a good friend.” Marian Anderson was one of the most celebrated...
Ann Lowe: The African American Fashion Designer Who Created Jacqueline Kennedy’s Wedding Dress
Ann Cole Lowe was the first African American to become a noted fashion designer. Lowe’s one-of-a-kind designs were a favorite among high society matrons from...
St. Josephine Bakhita: The only patron saint of Sudan
St. Josephine Bakhita was a Sudanese-born woman who was enslaved before becoming a Canossian Religious Sister in Italy, living and working there for 45 years....
Rebecca Davis Lee Crumpler: The first Black woman awarded a medical degree in the United States
“I early conceived a liking for, and sought every opportunity to relieve the suffering of others.” [dropcap size=small]R[/dropcap]ebecca Davis Lee Crumpler, was the first African-American...
Lear Green: Escaped to freedom in a small sailor’s chest
Lear Green was an enslaved African American young woman who escaped from Baltimore slaveholder James Noble by hiding in an old wooden sailor’s chest. The...
Azie Taylor Morton: The First African American Treasurer of the US
“It isn’t luck, and it isn’t circumstances, and it isn’t being born a certain way that causes a person’s future to become what it becomes.”...
Sarah Loguen Fraser: A Pioneering Pediatrician
Sarah Loguen Fraser was one of the first African American women to earn a medical degree, the first African American female physician specializing in obstetrics...
Jenny Slew: The first enslaved person to win her freedom via jury trial
Jenny Slew was a Black woman kidnapped into American slavery, who later petitioned for her freedom in court. Slew was the first ‘enslaved’ person to...