(December 1, 1940- April 9, 2011) Photo credits: The Estate of Jerry Lawson (Jerry Lawson) Before Xbox, PlayStation, or even Atari, you had to buy a...

Self-made Millionaire at the age of 15

April 5, 2019

Wally Amos was the first black talent agent and entrepreneur who founded Famous Amos cookies.

April 7, 2019

Inventors

Black Firsts

Dr. Percy Lavon Julian, the Chemist Who Defied Boundaries and Changed Medicine

tellersuntold - February 17, 2025

Introduction Black History Month is a time to celebrate the contributions of African Americans who have shaped our world. While figures like Martin Luther King...

Celebrating Black History: The Legacy of James Edward Maceo West and His Revolutionary Electret Microphone

February 6, 2025

Marie Van Brittan Brown: The Trailblazing Inventor Behind the First Home Security System

October 24, 2024

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African-American Firsts

Matthew Alexander Henson: One of the First to Reach the North Pole

Black Firsts Nonso Nwagbo - May 6, 2021

Matthew Alexander Henson was born on August 8, 1866, in Charles County, Maryland, U.S. He was an African American explorer. "My thoughts were on the...

Muriel Tramis: The First Black Woman Video Game Designer

Black Firsts tellersuntold - March 23, 2023

Men controlled the video gaming industry in the 1980s. The first black woman to design a video game was Muriel Tramis, a French-Caribbean woman...

Willa Brown: The First Black American Woman to Earn Both a Pilot’s License and a Commercial License

Black Firsts tellersuntold - April 4, 2023

Introduction Years after relocating to Chicago, I learned about Bessie Coleman, the first black woman to obtain a pilot's license in the United States in...

Ketanji Brown Jackson: The First Black Justice on the Supreme Court

Black Firsts tellersuntold - January 7, 2023

Ketanji Brown Jackson is the first African-American woman and federal public defender to sit on the Supreme Court. Jackson will replace Associate Justice Stephen...

Oscar Micheaux: The First Black Filmmaker-20 Unknown Facts

Black Firsts tellersuntold - November 13, 2023

Oscar Micheaux Devereaux (January 2, 1884 – March 25, 1951) is considered the first African-American to direct a feature film and a major producer...

Jesse Owens: the Buckeye Bullet!