Attorney Robert Heberton Terrell became the first black municipal court judge in Washington, DC. Tweet

Ophthalmologist, and professor, Dr. Maurice F. Rabb, Jr., won awards for his photographic work concentrating on the physiology of the inner eye. Tweet

Lloyd Hall invented a method that greatly cut the amount of time necessary to cure meats. He also created a method for sterilizing spices. This method was also used used in other industries. It is also used to sterilize medicine, medical supplies, and cosmetics. Tweet

John Shippen was the first black person to play professional golf. He was half African-American and half Native American. He lived on a reservation in Shinnecock Hills. In 1896, he came in fifth in the U.S. Open. Tweet

Willa Brown is the first Black woman to hold a commercial pilot’s license in the United States. She earned a degree from Indiana State Teachers College, a master’s degree from the Aeronautical University, and a master’s in business administration from Northwestern University. She and her husband, Cornelius Coffey, created the Coffey School of Aeronautics to […]

John Lee Love invented the portable pencil sharpener. He received a patent for it on November 23, 1897. Tweet

Joycelyn Harrison is a NASA engineer. She is also a prolific inventor. She has developed customized variations of piezoelectric materials. These materials will allow for remote self-repairing abilities, and synthetic muscles in robotics. Her research also includes: shaping reflectors, solar sails, and satellites. Joycelyn Harrison has a bachelor, master, and Ph.D. degrees in Chemistry from […]

Charles Waddell Chesnutt was an author and an attorney. Born in 1858, he was admitted into the Ohio bar in 1887. Tweet