People, Locations, Episodes

Matilda Evans, South Carolina Doctor born

On this date we celebrate the birth of Matilda Arabelle Evans, an African American surgeon in 1872.

The Lubricator Cup is Patented by a Black Man

*On this date in 1882, Black inventor Elijah McCoy patented the Lubricator Cup. The devise dripped small amounts of oil onto moving engine parts, saving businesses time and money.

It was used with steam engines. A hollow tube projected down from the bottom of the cup into a steam chamber. There was a valve at the top end of the tube and a piston at the lower end. Steam in the cylinder activated the piston, releasing the oil. A year later, McCoy improved on his original model so that oil was released only when there was no longer steam in the chamber.

Solomon Fuller, Physician born

*Solomon Fuller was born on this date in 1872.  He was a Black Liberian physician, psychiatrist, pathologist, and professor.  Solomon Carter Fuller was born in Monrovia, Liberia, to Americo-Liberian parents. His father, Solomon, had become a coffee planter and government official in Liberia. His mother, Anna Ursula James, was the daughter of physicians and medical […]

Ionia Rollin Whipper, Obstetrician born

*Ionia Rollin Whipper was born on this date in 1872.  She was a Black obstetrician and public health outreach worker.   Both of Whipper’s parents were from Beaufort, South Carolina, and were from Black families that had been free before the American Civil War. Her father, the lawyer William James Whipper, moved from Philadelphia to […]

John Alcindor, Doctor and Activist born

*John Alcindor was born on this date in 1873.  He was a Black British physician and activist. John Alcindor was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad, and educated at Saint Mary’s College. After winning one of the four Island Scholarships, he studied medicine at Edinburgh University, Scotland, graduating with a medical degree in 1899. He […]

Ludie Clay Andrews, Nurse, and Nursing Advocate born

*Ludie Clay Andrews was born on this date in 1874. She was a Black nurse and administrator. Ludie Clay Andrews, a Mulatto was born in Milledgeville, Georgia, where she graduated from Eddy High School. Shortly after, she entered nurse training at MacVicar Hospital at Spelman College in Atlanta, graduating in 1906. Spelman College later closed its nursing […]

Rivers Frederick, Physician born

On this date in 1874, Rivers Frederick, an African American physician, was born in New Roads, Pionte Coupee’ Parish, LA.

Frederick graduated from the University of New Orleans and earned his M.D. from the University of Illinois in 1897. He spent the next two years as a surgical clinician in Chicago, returning to New Orleans to begin a private practice. Responding to the lack of real opportunities for Black doctors in the United States, Frederick moved to Honduras in 1901.

Herbert Scrulock, Bio-Chemist born

*The birth of Herbert C. Scurlock in 1875 is celebrated on this date. He was an African American biochemist who pioneered the application of radiation therapy for the treatment of cancer and the use of x-ray to diagnose dental problems.

Meharry Medical College is Founded

This date celebrates the founding of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN. It is one of over 100 Historically Black Colleges and Universities in America.

Meharry Medical College was founded in 1876 as the Medical Department of Central Tennessee College of Nashville , under the auspices of the Freedman’s Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1900, Central Tennessee College became Walden University, and by 1915, the college gained a separate corporate existence from the university.

Fred T. Jones, Doctor, and Activist born

*Fred T. Jones was born on this date in 1877. He was an African American Physician, administrator and community activist.

Algernon Jackson, Surgeon, and Author born

*Algernon Jackson was born on this date in 1878. He was a Black physician, surgeon, author, and columnist.   Algernon Brashear Jackson was born in Princeton, Indiana, to Charles A. Jackson and Sarah L. Brashear Jackson. His mother was a public school teacher in the area and received an extensive education at several institutions, including […]

Harold Moody, Physician and Activist born.

*Harold Moody was born on October 8, 1882. He was an Afro Caribbean physician and activist. Harold Arundel Moody was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and Moody was the son of pharmacist Charles Ernest Moody and his wife Christina Emmeline Ellis. He completed his secondary education at Wolmer’s Schools. In 1904, he sailed to the United […]

Lawrence Nixon, Physician, and Voting Advocate born

*Lawrence Nixon was born on this date in 1883. He was a Black physician and voting-rights advocate.

The Lemington Elder Care Services Opens

*On the Fourth of July 1883, Lemington Elder Care Services (LECS) began. Located in Pittsburgh, this was one of the first Homes for the Aged and Infirm Colored Women in America and it is the oldest continuously operated home for the aged existing in the United States.

Elmer Imes, Physicist born

*Elmer Imes was born on this date in 1883.  He was a Black scientist specializing in physics.  Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Elmer Samuel Imes, the son of Elizabeth (née Wallace) and Benjamin A. Imes, both of whom were college-educated and had met at Oberlin College in Ohio. They married there in 1880. His father earned a […]