People, Locations, Episodes

The Banjo’s African, and African American Heritage, a story

*The Banjo’s African American Heritage is celebrated on this dates Registry. Since Caribbean Blacks created the banjo in the 17th century and carried it to North America in the 18th century, the banjo has been part of African American heritage. An African New World combination of European and African elements, early banjos resembled plucked full spike folk lutes like the akonting of Gambia, Senegal, and Guinea-Bissau and the bunchundo of Gambia and Guinea-Bissau.

Saint George Boulogne, Musician, and Composer born

Joseph Boulogne “Chevalier de Saint-Georges” was born on Christmas Day, 1745. He was an African French classical music conductor, composer, musician, and military officer.

James Hewlett, Stage Actor, and Singer born

*The birth of James Hewlett is celebrated on this date in 1778. He was a Black actor, a tailor, and a waiter who also performed one-man shows.  From the British West Indies, he was a servant boy for actor George Frederick Cooke and learned to imitate his actions and attitude.  He was a principal actor […]

George P. Bridgetower, Classical Musician born

The birth of George Polgreen Bridgetower in 1778 is celebrated on this date. He was an Black Polish classical violinist.

His father was an African prince who married a white European woman, Mary Ann Bridgetower. They had two sons who both became musicians. George’s younger brother Fredrick was a cellist. George played in the Prince’s band at the Royal Pavilion, Brighton, for 14 years. During that time, he became a talented 9-year-old violin prodigy.

The Hymn ‘Amazing Grace’ is Published

This date in 1779 marks the first publication of the hymn “Amazing Grace.” John Newton a White British man was responsible for writing one of the most beloved hymns of all times.

He was a British naval midshipman and a slave trader, who became a hymn writer and clergyman. He was on a homeward voyage while sailing his slave ship through a violent storm when he experienced what he referred to later as his “great deliverance.” Newton awoke in the middle of the night and prayed to God as the ship filled with water.

Francis (Frank) Johnson, Musician, and Teacher born

Frank Johnson was born on this date in 1792. He was a Black musician, band leader, and composer.

The ‘Black Spiritual’ In America, a story

On this date, we focus on Black spiritual music in America.

Elizabeth T. Greenfield, Vocalist born

On this date, Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield was born in 1817. She was a Black singer whose exceptional voice made her a popular performer in Great Britain.

Congo Square (New Orleans), a story

Congo Square is celebrated on this date’s Registry from 1817. It is the informal name for an open area in the southern corner of Louis Armstrong Memorial Park in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Justin Holland, Classical Guitarist born

The birth of Justin Holland in 1819 is celebrated on this date. He was a Black classical musician.

Black History and Folk Music, a story

*Black history in folk music is celebrated on this date in 1820.  This musical genre’s representation, along with jazz, comes near to being the first truly American classical music.  As soon as Blacks came through the Middle Passage, African culture gradually transformed into what some now call African American. They had to learn how to […]

Wallace Willis, Lyricist born

*The birth of Wallace Willis is celebrated on this date c 1820.  He was a Black Native American farmer and lyricist.  Wallace Willis was born on a plantation in Holly Springs, Mississippi. Wallace “Uncle” Willis and his wife, Aunt Minerva, were slaves of Britt Willis, a wealthy half-Irish, half-Choctaw farmer. When the United States government […]

J. R. Winters, Lyricist, and Inventor born

*J. R. Winters was born on this date in 1824. He was a Black lyricist, abolitionist, and inventor Joseph Richard Winters was born in Leesburg, Virginia, to an African brickmaker and a Shawnee Indian mother, the daughter of an herbalist and medical practitioner called the “Indian doctor woman.” The family relocated to Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, around […]

Charles Lucien Lambert, Composer born

*The birth of Charles Lucien Lambert is celebrated on this date in 1828. Also known as Lucien Lambert, Sr., he was a Black pianist, music teacher, and composer. Born a free Black Creole in New Orleans. His father was Charles-Richard Lambert, a native of New York, and his wife, a free Creole African woman. They were a […]

George L. White, Missionary, and Choral Conductor born

*George L. White was born on this date in 1838. He was a white-American soldier, missionary, and choral administrator. Born in Cadiz, New York George Leonard White was the son of a blacksmith who played in a local band. He attended public school until age fourteen and moved to Ohio when he was twenty. Although […]