People, Locations, Episodes

Estelle Ricketts, Composer born

*This date in 1871 celebrates the birth of Estelle Ricketts, a Black composer who lived in Darby, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. She lived with her mother, her younger brother, and her father, who operated a boarding stable. She was the only one in her family who could read and write.           Career            Estelle Ricketts’s […]

The Fisk Jubilee Singers are Formed

*The founding of the Fisk Jubilee Singers in 1866 is occurred on this date. These singers were talented emancipated slaves who toured to raise money for Fisk University.

Ruth G. Sheldon, Playwright born

*Ruth Shelton was born on this date in 1872. She was a Black writer and playwright.  Ruth Gaines-Shelton was from Glasgow, Missouri, the daughter of AME Church minister the Reverend George W. Gaines and his wife, Elizabeth Gaines. Her mother died when she was young, and she helped her father with church work at Old […]

Sherman Dudley, Stage Entrepreneur born

*The birth of Sherman Dudley is celebrated on this date, c1872.   He was a Black vaudeville performer and theatre entrepreneur.   Sherman Houston Dudley was born in Dallas, Texas, of humble parentage.  A jockey early in his youth, he turned to theater and gained a reputation by singing in a medicine show on a Dallas street corner.  By 1897, he had his […]

Dora Dean, Vaudeville Dancer born

*Dora Dean’s birth is celebrated on this date in 1872. She was a Black dancer and entertainer. She was born Dora Babbige in Cloverport, Kentucky. She worked as a nursemaid in Cincinnati, Ohio, before becoming an entertainer. Dean debuted as a dancer with a Creole traveling show. In vaudeville, she was “The Black Venus.” She was […]

George Walker, Vaudevillian Actor born

*George Walker’s birth is celebrated on this date in 1873.   He was a Black vaudevillian, actor, and producer.    George W. Walker was born in Lawrence, Kansas, and was the son of a policeman and his wife.   He began his career as a child performer, touring in Black minstrel and medicine shows.  In 1893, in San Francisco, Walker, at age 20, met Bert Williams, who […]

Belle Davis, Vaudeville Singer born

*Belle Davis was born on this date in 1874. She was a Black choreographer, dancer, and singer. Life: Davis was born in Chicago (although some say New Orleans). She was a mulatto and was encouraged to darken her skin to fit the stereotype of a black entertainer. In 1890, she joined the new burlesque “Creole Show” at […]

Anna Gardner Goodwin, Composer born

*The birth of Anna Gardner Goodwin is celebrated on this date in 1874.  She was a Black composer, mainly of religious music and marches. Anna Gardner was born in Augusta, Georgia, and is the daughter of Daniel and Anna Gardner. Dan Gardner was remembered as “the March King of Augusta,” a cornet player who led […]

Bert Williams, Actor, Comedian, and Composer born

This date remembers Bert Williams, born in 1876. Williams was an African American comedian who portrayed the slow-witted, shuffling black man that was then a standard role in vaudeville.

He was born in New Providence, Bahamas. Williams went to California with his family when he was a child. Later he worked in the mining and lumber camps of the West.

Meta V.W. Fuller, Sculptor born

*This date marks the birth of Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller in 1877. She was a Black sculptor and one of the earliest studio artists to depict Black themes.

May Howard Jackson, Sculptor born

On this date we celebrate the birth of May Howard Jackson, an African American sculptor, in 1877.

She was born in Philadelphia, PA., the daughter of Floarda Howard and Sallie Durham. She attended public schools and then entered Todd’s Art School. In 1895, she became the first black student to receive a scholarship to attend the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where she studied for four years with William Merritt Chase, Charles Grafly, and John Joseph Boyle. She graduated in 1899 and married William Sherman Jackson, a mathematics teacher.

Bill Robinson, Dancer born

On this date in 1878, Bill Bojangles Robinson was born. He was an African American tap dancer and entertainer.

Charles Gilpin, Actor born

Charles Gilpin was born on this date in 1878. He was an African American actor and singer.

Born in Richmond, VA, Charles Sidney Gilpin worked as an apprentice in the Richmond Planet print shop before finding his career in theater and becoming one of the most highly regarded actors of the 1920s. He first came on stage as a singer at the age of 12. In 1896, Gilpin joined a minstrel show, leaving Richmond and beginning a life on the road for many years.

Mary Burrill, Teacher, and Playwright born

*Mary P. Burrill was born on this date in 1881.  She was a Black teacher and playwright.  Born in Washington, D.C., her father was John H. Burrill, and her mother was Clara E. Burrill.    She graduated in 1901 from Washington’s M Street School (later Dunbar High School), entered Emerson College in the fall of […]

Lester Walton, Composer, and Journalist born

*Lester Walton was born on this date in 1882.  He was a Black composer, diplomat, and journalist.   From St. Louis, Mo, Lester Aglar Walton graduated from a segregated Sumner High School in St. Louis. After graduation, his father provided him with a white tutor to help him graduate from a business school. Walton was an Alpha Phi […]