DID YOU KNOW? for January 30 – February 12, 2024 

Maj. Gen. Marcia Anderson, U.S. Army Reserve, was the first African-American woman to achieve the rank of major general on October 1, 2011 at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Anderson had previously served as the clerk of Bankruptcy Court, Western District of Wisconsin, located in Madison, Wisconsin. She retired from the military in 2016 after 37 years of service.

Learn more here: https://www.awfdn.org/trailblazers/maj-general-marcia-anderson-usar/ 

DID YOU KNOW? for January 16 – 29, 2024

Lewis Latimer (1848-1928), the youngest son born to parents who had escaped from slavery just six years before his birth, was a talented African-American inventor. Latimer worked in Thomas Edison’s lab and designed several light bulb improvements. He also made significant inventions in the areas of air conditioning and railroad cars.

Learn More:
https://invention.si.edu/innovative-lives-lewis-latimer-1848-1928-renaissance-man

DID YOU KNOW? for January 2 – 15, 2024  

Sheila Crump Johnson (Born on January 25, 1949) is the first African-American woman to become a billionaire. In addition to co-founding Black Entertainment Television (BET) and serving as the Chief Executive Officer of Salamander Hotels and Resorts, Johnson is also the first African-American woman to be an owner or partner in three professional sports franchises: the Washington Capitals (NHL), the Washington Wizards (NBA), and the Washington Mystics (WNBA).

Learn More:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheila_Johnson

DID YOU KNOW – December 12, 2023 – January 1, 2024

Ynes Mexia (May 24, 1870 – July 12, 1938) was a Mexican-American botanical collector and explorer who collected 145,000 plant species – an incredible number – especially because she began collecting while in her mid-50’s! Mexia's discoveries continue to impact researchers today and her work can be viewed in many museums and universities.

Learn more: 

DID YOU KNOW? for November 28 – December 11, 2023 

Granville T. Woods (April 23, 1856 – January 30, 1910), nicknamed "Black Edison”, was an inventor who held various engineering and industrial jobs before establishing an electric apparatus company. Woods registered more than 50 patents in his lifetime! He was best known for inventing the induction telegraph in 1887. 

Learn more:  https://www.biography.com/inventors/granville-t-woods

DID YOU KNOW? for November 14 – 27, 2023

10 Million People. 10 Million Stories. 10 Million Names.

"10 Million Names is dedicated to recovering the names of the estimated ten million men, women, and children of African descent who were enslaved in pre- and post-colonial America (specifically, the territory that would become the United States) between the 1500s and 1865. 10 Million Names is engaging a collaborative network of expert genealogists, cultural organizations, and community-based family historians. Together they seek to amplify the voices of people who have been telling their family stories for centuries, connect researchers and data partners with people seeking answers to family history questions, and expand access to data, resources, and information about enslaved African Americans.”

Learn More: 

https://10millionnames.org/

DID YOU KNOW? for October 31 – November 13, 2023 

Alain LeRoy Locke (September 13, 1885 – June 9, 1954) was the first African-American man awarded a Rhodes Scholarship in 1907. As a writer, philosopher, and educator, Locke’s work helped educate white readers about Black culture which flourished during the Harlem Renaissance. His seminal work, The New Negro – a collection of fiction, poetry, and essays by Locke and other African Americans including Countee Cullen, Langston Hughes, and Zora Neale Hurston – was published in 1925. 

Learn more,,,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alain_LeRoy_Locke

DID YOU KNOW? for October 17 – 30, 2023 

Susie King Taylor (August 6, 1848 – October 6, 1912) is known for many firsts –two of which are being the first Black nurse during the American Civil War and being the first Black woman to self-publish her memoirs. Taylor was also an author and educator in the postbellum South who opened various schools in Georgia and so much more!

Learn more…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susie_King_Taylor

DID YOU KNOW? for October 3 – 16, 2023 

Mildred Fish (September 16, 1902 – February 1943) was born in Milwaukee and studied and taught English at UW-Madison where she met her German husband, Arvid Harnack. After moving to Germany, the couple joined a small Nazi-resistance group which the Gestapo called the Red Orchestra. Unfortunately, the Nazis executed them for their social justice work. Fish-Harnack was the only American woman executed on the direct order of Adolf Hitler. 

Learn more at: https://womeninwisconsin.org/profile/mildred-fish-harnack/

DID YOU KNOW? for September 19 – October 2, 2023 

Dr. Mary Walker (November 26, 1832 – February 21, 1919) was the first woman to be employed as a contract surgeon in the US Army. It was a struggle to be hired in this role – after earning a medical degree in 1855 from Syracuse College, Walker sought to volunteer for service as a surgeon or a spy during the Civil War but was turned down. Since the only option offered her was to serve as a nurse, Walker began treating the wounded and sick as a volunteer civilian doctor and finally the Army recognized her skill and hired her as a contract surgeon.

Learn more at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Edwards_Walker