People, Locations, Episodes

Black History in STEM, a story

On this date, the Registry looks at the African American contributions to science and chemistry in history.

Understanding the properties of substances or matter and how to make practical use of them is the essence of chemistry, whether the study takes place in a formal laboratory or not. The effectiveness of folk medicines used for centuries by traditional Africans and African American practitioners throughout the world is recognized today.

Thomas Fuller, Mathematician born

*This date in 1710 is celebrated as the birth date of Thomas Fuller, a Black African slave and mathematician.   He was born between present-day Liberia and Benin. He was one of the millions of Black Africans kidnapped to America as a slave at 14 during the Middle Passage. He was the property of Mrs. Elizabeth […]

Benjamin Banneker, Astronomer and Mathematician born

Benjamin Banneker was born on this date in 1731. He was a self-taught, Black astronomer and mathematician.

Banneker and his sisters were born free and grew up on a self-sufficient, 100-acre tobacco farm in Ellicott, MD. Growing up, he spent much of his free time devising and solving mathematical puzzles. It was not until after his retirement from farming at the age of 59 that Banneker began to study astronomy through borrowed books, becoming a man of science and mathematics through unassisted experimentation and close observation of natural phenomena.

Norbert Rillieux, Engineer, and Inventor born

*This date marks the birth of Norbert Rillieux in 1806. He was an African American inventor and engineer whose patented inventions revolutionized the sugar refining industry.

Josephine Silone Yates, STEM Professor born

*Josephine Silone Yates was born on this date in 1859.  She was a Black chemist, journalist, and educator.   Josephine Silone was the second daughter of Alexander and Parthenia Reeve Silone and was born in Mattituck, NY. During her childhood, her family lived with her maternal grandfather, a freed slave, Lymas Reeves. Her mother taught […]

George Washington Carver, Agriscientist born

This date marks the birth of George Washington Carver in 1864. He was an African American educator and innovator in the agricultural sciences.

Carver was born near Diamond, Missouri. He left home when he was about ten and eventually settled in Minneapolis and Kansas, where he worked his way through high school. Following his graduation from Iowa State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts (now Iowa State University), Carver joined the college faculty and continued his studies, specializing in bacteriological laboratory work in systematic botany.

Charles Turner, Zoologist, and Inventor born

*On this date in 1867, Charles Turner was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was an African American zoologist and inventor.

Herman Marie Moens, Ethnologist born.

*Herman Marie Moens was born on September 25, 1875. He was a white self-proclaimed anthropologist and admirer of eugenics. Herman Marie Bernelot Moens was born in the Netherlands, the son of a naval officer. Although he initially showed little interest in country life, after a mediocre high school result, he enrolled in an education in […]

George Imes, Physicist, and Educator born

*George Imes was born on this date in 1883.  He was a Black physicist and educator.  From Franklin County, PA, George Lake Imes was the son of George Imes and Lucinda Clark.  His father and older sister, Aura Imes, taught at the Hygienic School in Steelton, PA.  Imes attended there and Steelton High School, graduating […]

St. Elmo Brady, Chemist born

*St. Elmo Brady was born on this date in 1884. He was an African American chemist.

Frederick Massiah, Engineer born.

This date celebrates the birth of Frederick McDonald Massiah in 1886. He was an African American engineer and businessman.

Theodore Lawless, Dermatologist born

Theodore Lawless was born on this date in 1892. He was an African American dermatologist, philanthropist, and medical pioneer.

Marguerite Thomas Williams, Geologist born

*Marguerite Thomas Williams was born on this date in 1895. She was a Black geologist.  From Washington, D.C., Marguerite Thomas was the sixth of six children born to Henry C. and Clara E. Thomas. She attended Washington Normal School #2, later known as the Normal School for Colored Girls (then accredited by Congress as Miners […]

Rosco McKinney, Anatomy Scientist born

*Roscoe Lewis McKinney was born on this date in 1900. He was a Black scientist specializing in Anatomy.  From Washington D.C., He earned his B.A. from Bates College in 1921. From there, he taught Biology at Morehouse College for two years. He earned his Ph.D. in Anatomy from the University of Chicago in 1930, assisted […]

E. Luther Brookes, Chemist born

*E. Luther Brookes’s birth is celebrated on this date in 1900. He was a Black chemist and Professor. From Jamaica, British West Indies, Enos Luther Brookes was the son of Professor James M. Brookes and Martha Brookes. “The death of his mother prevented his acceptance of a scholarship to an English University. He traveled to Central America […]