Benjamin Banneker (1731-1806)

Benjamin Banneker (1731-1806) Raised on a farm in Maryland, Benjamin Banneker wanted to learn everything he could about the world around him. After his grandmother taught him how to read the Bible, he ready any other book he could find. He taught himself literature, history, and math. When Banneker was in his 20s, he built a clock He had never seen one before – but he had seen a pocket watch. Using math ratios, he figured out how big each piece should be and then carved the gears and wheels from wood. It was so well made that it ran for over 50 years. While managing the family farm, Banneker learned how to play the flute and violin. He tended beehives, correctly predicted a solar eclipse in 1789, and answered any math problem he was given Banneker also helped President George Washington survey the land that would become Washington, DC, thus becoming the first black employee of the government.

A student of astronomy, Banneker published his discoveries about stars in a series of almanac. Thomas Jefferson loved Banneker’s work, and sent copies around the world for others to study. Banneker’s last years were spent on his family farm entertaining friends and other scientists. Highlight text taken from "Discover the Adventures & Achievements of 60 Great Black Americans!"

Walter F. White (1893-1955)

TODAY'S BLACK HISTORY MONTH HIGHLIGHT

(1893-1955) Because Walter White had blue eyes, blond hair, and a light complexion, he was often mistaken for a white man. This gave him the chance to go to the Deep South and see what was happening in rural work camps. He saw countless murders and lynchings. In 1929, he wrote about his experiences, bringing the horrors of these crimes to the nation’s attention. White also wrote two power novels about racism, The Fire in the Flint and Fight. He was a founder of the Harlem Renaissance, a time when writers and artists explored black culture. In addition to work, White helped defend a number of blacks in well-known legal cases such as the 1919 Chicago Race Riot. He held several important position in the NAACP. Under his leadership, the organization grew, created a legal division, and put an end to all-white election primaries and housing discrimination. White became a close personal friend of Eleanor Roosevelt; through her, he was able to share many of his ideas with the president. Highlight text taken from "Discover the Adventures & Achievements of 60 Great Black Americans!"

Rosa Parks : 1913-2005

It's been a LONG TIME since I last blogged and what better way to try to start again but to bring to you daily Black History Makers and/or facts.

TODAY'S BLACK HISTORY MONTH HIGHLIGHT: Also in honor of what would have been her 100th Birthday today, Rosa Parks, (1913-2005) Known as the "mother of the Civil Rights Movement, " Rosa Parks refused to give her seat and started a struggle for freedom that rippled throughout the country. It had been a long day at work, and Rosa Parks was eager for the bus to come and take her home. When it finally pulled up, however, there were not any seats left in the back where blacks sat. Weary, Parks sat down in the white section. When the bus driver asked her to give up her seat for a white passenger, she refused. Parks was arrested. She and her husband lost their jobs. Blacks throughout the Montgomery, Alabama area took up her cause and started a boycott of the bus system. This unofficially started the Civil Rights Movement, which was led by minister Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The boycott ended a year later when the US Supreme Cort declared that bus segregation was unconstitutional. Her refusal to give up her seat was not Park's first involvement with civil rights. Twenty years earlier, she and her husband unsuccessfully worked to free nine black men who had been falsely accused of attacking two white women. Later, she worked as a secretary for the NAACP. Toward the end of her life, she wrote three autobiographies and won many honors and awards, including the Congressional Gold Medal. Also, today the United States Postal Service issued "Day of Courage" Stamp that you see featured in the photograph. If you would like to purchase this please go to : https://store.usps.com/store/browse/productDetailSingleSku.jsp?productId=S_470404&categoryId=subcatS_S_Sheets Highlight text taken from "Discover the Adventures & Achievements of 60 Great Black Americans!"