School Desegregation Took 18 Years

School Desegregation Took 18 Years

During the Eisenhower Administration, landmark events shaped the Civil Rights Movement in the 20th Century.  Eight years after the 1954 unanimous ruling of Brown v. Board of Education, the Southern Manifesto (1956), signed by more than 100 Democratic Congressmen,...
First Black American Car Dealer

First Black American Car Dealer

Homer B. Roberts was a WWI veteran and an electrical engineer. Not only was he the first black American car dealer but was also one of the first black retailing giants. He created a cutting-edge campaign of “class and distinction almost describes our cars and...
Black Mariners in Whaling Industry

Black Mariners in Whaling Industry

  Did you know that blacks served among crews on whaling ships before the American Revolution? Did you know that Crispus Attucks spent 20 years as a whaler before he was the first casualty at the Boston Massacre on March 5, 1770? Crispus was a fugitive slave from...
Jim Crow in the Saddle

Jim Crow in the Saddle

In the early 19th Century, Southern Thoroughbred breeders relied on slaves to care for, ride and train horses. After Emancipation slaves remained on the farms and it was their expertise and skill that allowed them to become successful jockeys, trainers and eventually...
First Black Auto Manufacturer

First Black Auto Manufacturer

Frederick Postell Patterson was the first manufacturer, owner, and operator of Greenfield-Patterson Automobile Company.  His first car debuted in 1915, built-in Ohio,the car competed with the Model T by Henry Ford and cost $850. Patterson’s carwas possibly more...