Black and African American People

by . Among the musicians from Kinston, North Carolina who have created legacies in the world of music, one of the earliest to be recognized was the jazz composer and band leader J. Tim Brymn. Born in [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by Peek, Matthew M. James William Alston 18 Jan. 1876-14 Dec. 1940 by Matthew M. Peek, State Archives of North Carolina, 2015 James William Alston served in the U.S. Army during both the Spanish-American War [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by . An excerpt from an oral history interview conducted in 1991 between Bob Gilgor and Joanne Peerman, an African American women who grew up in Chapel Hill and experienced integration during the 1960s [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Watson, Harry L. 1830-1850: Antebellum NC Begins Originally published as "Winning the Fight for Progress-- North Carolina's Antebellum years begin: 1830-1850" by Harry L. Watson Reprinted with permission from [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Silverstein, Barrett A. Have you ever heard the phrase “the roaring twenties?” Also known as the Jazz Age, the decade of the 1920s featured economic prosperity and carefree living for many. The decade began with a roar and [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Manor, Amy, Pronovost, Emily. Originally published as "4-H and Home Demonstration among African Americans", Green 'N' Growing, The History of Home Demonstration and 4-H Youth Development in North Carolina, NCSU Libraries. [...] (from NCSU Libraries.)

by Eckard, Max. Patrick Denard Douthit, better known by his stage name, 9th Wonder (or, since 2010, 9thmatic), is a record producer and record executive from Winston Salem, NC. He is also a Grammy award-winning [...] (from NCpedia.)

by . The man is reading a newspaper with headline, "Presidential Proclamation, Slavery," which refers to the Jan. 1863 Emancipation Proclamation. Stephens has created several other illustrations that [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by . A black sailor in the American Revolution This African American sailor, whose portrait here was painted during the American Revolution, wears the uniform of a sailor in the navy rather than of one [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Franck, Julie. Galloway, Abraham 8 Feb.1837 - 1 Sept.1870 by Julie Franck, North Carolina State University, 2013; Revised September 2022 Abraham Galloway was a formerly enslaved person, Union spy and [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Faulkner, Ronnie W. Ad valorem taxation of enslaved people was a major political issue in antebellum North Carolina and continued during the Civil War as a manifestation of the divisions between the planter class and [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Pollitt, Phoebe Ann. Originally published in "North Carolina Nursing History." Republished with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. Please submit permission requests for other uses [...] (from Appalachian State University.)

by . Address to the Colored People of North Carolina A complete transcription is [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . Adkin High School Walkout 1951 Kinston, NC by the North Carolina Arts Council. Originally published in African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina, copyright 2013. Republished [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by . Original title: "Negro Marines prepare for action. Breaking a tradition of 167 years, the U.S. Marine Corps started enlisting Negroes on June 1, 1942. The first class of 1,200 Negro volunteers began [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . African American Marines, World War II Original title: "Negro Marines prepare for action. Breaking a tradition of 167 years, the U.S. Marine Corps started enlisting Negroes on June 1, 1942. The [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina: Kinston Area by the North Carolina Arts Council. Originally published in African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina, [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by Gregory, Lisa. African American Newspapers in North Carolina By Lisa Gregory, North Carolina Digital Heritage Center, 2018; Revised by NC Government and Heritage Library, January 2023 Since the publication [...] (from North Carolina Digital Heritage Center.)

by Crow, Jeffrey J. African Americans and the Revolution Originally published as "'Liberty to Slaves': The Black Response" by Jeffrey J. Crow; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, June [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue, Barfield, Rodney D., Nash, Steven E., Williams, Wiley J., Wescott, Joseph W., II. African Americans by Roberta Sue Alexander, Rodney D. Barfield, and Steven E. Nash, 2006 Additional research provided by Joseph W. Wescott II and Wiley J. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue, Barfield, Rodney D., Nash, Steven E. Part i: Introduction; Part ii: Life under slavery and the achievements of free Black people; Part iii: Emancipation and the Freedmen's Fight for Civil Rights; Part iv: Segregation and the struggle [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue, Barfield, Rodney D., Nash, Steven E. Part i: Introduction; Part ii: Life under slavery and the achievements of free Black people; Part iii: Emancipation and the Freedmen's Fight for Civil Rights; Part iv: Segregation and the struggle [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue, Barfield, Rodney D., Nash, Steven E. Part i: Introduction; Part ii: Life under slavery and the achievements of free Black people; Part iii: Emancipation and the Freedmen's Fight for Civil Rights; Part iv: Segregation and the struggle [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue, Barfield, Rodney D., Nash, Steven E. Part i: Introduction; Part ii: Life under slavery and the achievements of free Black people; Part iii: Emancipation and the Freedmen's Fight for Civil Rights; Part iv: Segregation and the struggle [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue, Barfield, Rodney D., Nash, Steven E. Part i: Introduction; Part ii: Life under slavery and the achievements of free Black people; Part iii: Emancipation and the Freedmen's Fight for Civil Rights; Part iv: Segregation and the struggle [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Coffey, Michael W. During the siege of Washington in April 1863, Union troops armed African Americans to participate in the defense of the town. The incident is an early example in North Carolina of the shift [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Poteat, RaeLana. By mid-1862, less than a year after North Carolina left the Union, portions of the state were again under Federal control. The Union army first regained a toehold in the state by capturing Hatteras [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Wilson, Madafo Lloyd. African and African American Storytelling By Madafo Lloyd Wilson Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian, Spring 2002. Tar Heel Junior Historian Association, NC Museum of [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Criner, Allyson C. African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church is a Christian denomination dating back to 1787, when a number of black worshippers withdrew from the interracial St. George's Methodist Episcopal Church in [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Williams, Wiley J. African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church by Wiley J. Williams, 2006 See also: African Americans; Simon Green Atkins; Andrew J. Cartwright; John Campbell Dancy, Jr.; James Walker Hood; [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by LeCount, Charles. One hundred fifty years ago, nearly all North Carolinians made their living by farming. And even the majority of those who did not actually farm were still tied to the state’s agricultural economy: [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Williams, Wiley J. The American Missionary Association (AMA) was a Christian educational organization founded on 3 Sept. 1846 in Albany, N.Y., through the antislavery coalition of the Union Missionary Society, the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Horton, Emily S. Maya Angelou was best known as a poet and the best-selling author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1970). Angelou was also a singer, dancer, Grammy-winning composer, director, and actress. She was [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Lasley, Rebecca Graham. Anti-Slavery Movement in North Carolina by Rebecca Graham Lasley Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Fall 2008; Revised by NC Government & Heritage Library, May [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by . A black man stands at a bus station beneath a sign reading "Colored Waiting Room." The Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896 established that segregation in public spaces, such as bus stops, [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Gainor, Samuel M. Atkins received his early schooling in Haywood. He was an astute student and progressed to teaching in the town school before he enrolled in St. Augustine's Normal Collegiate Institute, now St. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Carrier, Sarah. Ann George Atwater was a lifelong grassroots civil rights activist in Durham, North Carolina. She was born in Hallsboro, Columbus County on July 1, 1935. As a child, she attended the Farmers’ Union [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by . Auction of Enslaved People at Richmond, Virginia Wood engraving shows an enslaved, Black woman being auctioned for sale by an enslaver in front of crowd of [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Stewart, James. Neil Alexander Bailey* was the first African-American agricultural extension agent in the state of North Carolina. He was born in Harnett County, North Carolina, the son of Edward and Phillis McLean [...] (from NCSU Libraries.)

by Townes, Mitzi. Ella Baker was born on December 13, 1903 in Norfolk , Va. When Ella was eight years old her family moved to Littleton, North Carolina. In 1918, Ella Baker entered Shaw University, a Baptist boarding [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Agan, Kelly, Davis, Sarajanee. Baker, Ella Josephine Giving light so people can find the way By Sarajanee Davis, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2019; Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2020. From [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Barber-Scotia College by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006 See also: Historically Black Colleges and Universities; North Carolina Women's Colleges; Historically Black Colleges and [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly. Ernest Eugene Barnes – known as Ernie -- was born on July 15, 1938 to parents Ernest E. Barnes, Sr. and Fannie Mae Geer near the Hayti neighborhood in Durham.  His father, originally from [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Horton, Emily S. Fantasia Barrino June 30, 1984- by Emily Horton NC Government & Heritage Library, 2016. Related Entries: Clay Aiken; Kellie Pickler; Chris Daughtry; Bucky Covington; Scotty McCreery; [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Johnson, Lloyd. Bassett Affair by Lloyd Johnson, 2006 See also: Bassett, John Spencer, Trinity College The Bassett Affair significantly enhanced the ideal of academic freedom in North Carolina and the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wegner, Ansley Herring. Bearden, Romare by Ansley Wegner, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2013   September 2, 1911 - March 12, 1988 Romare Bearden was born in Charlotte in 1911. [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Hill, Steven. Best, Andrew Arthur (November 26, 1916-December 7, 2005) by Steven A. Hill, 2019 Published with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution.  Andrew [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Cecelski, David S. On the day she passed her bar exam in 1974, Karen Galloway, now Karen Bethea-Shields, was named co-counsel in the first-degree murder trial of Joan Little. It became one of the most controversial [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Anderson, Jean B. By Elizabeth A. Fenn, Peter H. Wood, Harry L. Watson, Thomas H. Clayton, Sydney Nathans, Thomas C. Parramore, and Jean B. Anderson; Maps by Mark Anderson Moore. Edited by Joe A. Mobley. [...] (from The Way We Lived in North Carolina, NC Office of Archives and History and UNC Press.)

by . The North Carolina Award, the state's highest civilian honor, was established by the General Assembly in 1961 and the first award-winners were honored in 1964. Artist Romare Bearden was the first [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Harris, William C. The Black and Tan Constitution was a derisive label used by many white Democrats to characterize the North Carolina Constitution of 1868. The term referred to the individuals who were believed to [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Harris, William C. Black Codes by William C. Harris, 2006 See Also: Slave Codes Soon after the Civil War, southern states governed by Presidential Reconstruction (1865-67) adopted racially discriminatory [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Kenzer, Robert C. Black Freemasonry, like its white counterpart, promotes fellowship within a membership that engages in a wide variety of social and benevolent activities. Although Black freemasonry dates back to the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Schutz, J. Christopher. The Black Panther Party was founded in Oakland, Calif., in October 1966. The controversial organization espoused black pride and black control of neighborhood institutions, preached self-defense [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly, Davis, Sarajanee. Black Wall Street Business is Booming By Sarajanee Davis and Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2020 Where do you and your family shop for food and supplies? Can you imagine [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Hill, Michael. In the early twentieth century, Parrish Street in Durham constituted what today would be called an enterprise zone, propelled by the Bull City’s African American businessmen. Nationally recognized, [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Kassa, Kemisa. Martin Black was a Black soldier, prisoner of war, and landowner during the American Revolution. He was born free around the year 1751 in Craven County, North Carolina. He was the son of Elizabeth [...] (from NCpedia.)

by McGee, Barry. Blue Lodges were secret groups organized to defend slavery and the "southern way of life" in response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. The new law, sponsored by Senator Stephen A. Douglas of [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Holden, Charles J., Baker, Bruce E. North Carolina boasts significant contributions to the musical tradition known as the blues. Throughout its formative decades, the blues was the music of solo artists rather than groups, with the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Rodriguez, Crystal. Hannah Bond was an enslaved African American woman who escaped bondage and wrote the earliest known novel written by an African American woman. The unpublished novel was not rediscovered until it was [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Pollitt, Phoebe Ann. Originally published in "North Carolina Nursing History." Republished with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. Please submit permission requests for other uses [...] (from Appalachian State University.)

by Stephenson, E. Frank, Jr. Calvin Scott Brown, educator, editor, minister, and advisor, was born in Salisbury of black and Scot-Irish ancestry. His father was Henry Brown, a farmer, and his mother was Flora Brown. Brought up [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Burns, Augustus M., III. Brown, Charlotte Hawkins by A. M. Burns III, 1979; Revised November 2022. See also: Brown, Charlotte Hawkins, Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum, Palmer Memorial Institute, Charlotte Hawkins Brown [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Anonymous. CHARLOTTE HAWKINS BROWN See also: Brown, Charlotte Hawkins from the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography; Charlotte Hawkins Brown for K-8 Students This essay is adapted from information at [...] (from Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum.)

by Cecelski, David S. I spoke with Hattie Brown as we walked through the old graveyard in Goshen, a black farming community in Jones County. She had a story for each of the dead. Her most striking memories were her [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Hill, Michael. The name of Rose Butler Browne is venerated on the campus of North Carolina Central University (NCCU). Born in Boston in 1897, Browne was an influential educator, civil rights activist, and community [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Baker, Bruce E. Buck dancing is a folk dance that originated among African Americans during the era of slavery. It was largely associated with the North Carolina Piedmont and, later, with the blues. The original [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by DiNome, William G. Burial Customs by William G. DiNome, 2006 See also: Funerals; Town Creek Indian Mound. The nature of the specific burial customs that may have existed among the people inhabiting the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly. Burke, Selma Hortense By Adapted by Kelly Agan, Government & Heritage Library, 2019, from the Blog, "This Day in North Carolina History" (December 31, 2016) 31 Dec. 1900 - 29 Aug. [...] (from North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.)

by Hill, Michael. Camp Johnson (Montford Point) by Michael Hill, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2000 https://ncmarkers.com/search.aspx See also: Camp [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Cecelski, David S. Mary Cannady was 50 years old in 1965 when three civil rights activists were killed in Alabama. The deaths of Jimmie Lee Jackson, the Rev. James Reeb and Viola Liuzzo shocked the nation, including [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Cecelski, David S. The great fire of 1922 burned 40 city blocks in New Bern and left thousands of people homeless. It was the most destructive fire in the state's history. Dorcas E. Carter, one of the few people who [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Kassa, Kemisa. Isaac Carter was a free person of color and Patriot soldier during the American Revolution. Carter was born in Cumberland County, North Carolina around 1764. Carter estimated 1764 as his birth year [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Cross, Jerry L. Andrew J. Cartwright, minister and agent of the American Colonization Society, was born in Elizabeth City. Some contend that he was the son of enslaved parents and other believe that he was [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Caldwell, John T. William Claudius Chance, Sr., educator and humanitarian, was born in Parmele. His parents were W. V. and Alice Chance; his grandparents, who reared him, were Bryant and Penethia Chance; all were [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stoesen, Alexander R. Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum by Alexander R. Stoesen, 2006 See also: Brown, Charlotte Hawkins; Palmer Memorial Institute; Museums The Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum is located in eastern [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly, Ashley, Stephen. Brown, Charlotte Hawkins Charlotte Hawkins Brown: Singing Her Own Song By Stephen Ashley and Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2020 From the NCpedia K-8 [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Parramore, Barbara M. Chavis, John by Barbara M. Parramore, 1979; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, November 2023   See also: John Chavis on ANCHOR and John Chavis for K-8 Students ca. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gatewood, Willard B., Jr. Henry Plummer Cheatham, politician, educator, and racial spokesman, was born to a house slave on a plantation near Henderson. Treated with favor by his white father, a prominent planter, Cheatham [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stewart, James. Captain D. K. Cherry was a noted African American college professor at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, a distinguished World War I veteran, and the president of the [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Andrews, William L. Chesnutt, Charles Waddell by William L. Andrews, 1979; Revised November 2022; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, June 2023 20 June 1858–15 Nov. 1932 Charles Waddell Chesnutt, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Brown, Flora Bryant. African American Civil Rights in North Carolina by Dr. Flora Bryant Brown Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Fall 2004; Revised by NC Government and Heritage Library, [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Price, William S., Jr., Criner, Allyson C. Part i: Introduction; Part ii: Roots of Civil Rights Activism in North Carolina; Part iii: Brown v. Board of Education and White Resistance to School Desegregation; Part iv: Integration Efforts in [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by McDermott, Nancie. A hot dog got it all started—the hot dog that Joe McNeil did not get to eat one day in January 1960. Nineteen years old and a graduate of Williston High School in Wilmington, McNeil was a student at [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Cole, Olen. Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) "Work and Opportunity: African Americans in the CCC" by Dr. Olen Cole Jr. Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Spring 2010. Tar Heel [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Faulkner, Ronnie W. The Clansman, a novel recounting the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the so-called redemption of the South by the Ku Klux Klan, was written by North Carolina author Thomas Dixon Jr. (1864-1946) and [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Franke, Matthew. George Clinton (nicknamed "the Prime Minister of Funk" and "Dr. Funkenstein") is a singer, songwriter, and producer best known as the leader of the popular funk bands Parliament and Funkadelic [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Baker, Bruce E. Coleman Manufacturing Company by Bruce E. Baker, 2006 The Coleman Manufacturing Company in Concord was the first black-owned cotton mill in the United States. Warren C. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Krieger, Marvin, Putt, Alyssa. Warren Clay Coleman, merchant, businessman, and manufacturer, was born into slavery as the son of Roxanna "Roxie" Coleman, a woman enslaved by Daniel Coleman, Sr., of Concord, and Rufus Clay [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mitchell, Memory F., Canipe, Jeremy T. Colonization Societies were organized in the early nineteenth century to promote the relocation of African Americans, particularly free blacks, to places such as Haiti, Liberia, the American Midwest, [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Losse, Helen. The Colored Farmers' Alliance was created when an agricultural depression hit the South around 1870 and farmers began to organize themselves into radical political groups. It paralleled the white [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Tolbert, Lisa. For two months in the spring of 1929, a group of African American grocery store owners in Winston-Salem organized public lectures, meetings, exhibits, and food tastings that attracted large audiences [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Williams, Wiley J. The Commission on Interracial Cooperation (CIC), founded in 1919 with support from the Julius Rosenwald Fund and based in Atlanta, was dedicated to the improvement of race relations in the South. In [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Although many African Americans wanted to join the Union army during the first two years of the Civil War, they were often turned away. But after January 1, 1863 -- the day Lincoln delivered the [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Gavins, Raymond. The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), founded in Chicago in 1942, crusaded for equality through nonviolence and integration. It came to North Carolina on a 1947 southern bus during a "Journey of [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Ijames, Earl. During the antebellum era—the years leading up to the Civil War—North Carolina’s population of free people of color blossomed. This group included American Indians, African Americans, and multiracial [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Norris, David A. Contrabands were slaves who escaped to Union lines during the Civil War. When the conflict began, the North's aim was primarily to preserve the Union, not to end slavery. Slaves who escaped to Union [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Railroads were often constructed using the labor of incarcerated people. This photograph was taken circa 1890 by Asheville photographer Thomas H. Lindsey. Lindsey was one of the first photographers [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. Cooper, Anna Julia The World Needs to Hear Her Voice  By Sarajanee Davis, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2020 From the NCpedia K-8 Collection August 10, 1858-February 27, [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Wegner, Ansley Herring. Cooper, Anna Julia 10 Aug. 1858-27 Feb. 1964 by Ansley Wegner, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2010; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, May [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Howard, Joshua. Tar Heels at Harper's Ferry, October 16-18, 1859: John Anthony Copeland By Joshua Howard, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2011; Revised March 2022, Government and Heritage [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by . Cover of Opportunity magazine, February 1926Cover of Opportunity magazine, February 1926Cover of Opportunity: Journal of Negro Life, February 1926: Industrial Issue. Shows two black silhouetted [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Agan, Kelly. Crabtree Creek State Park (William B. Umstead State Park) By Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2015 Established: 1943 GPS [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . Daisy Bates was a civil rights activist and the head of the state chapter of the NAACP. She served as advisor to the Little Rock Nine, nine black students who enrolled at the all-white Central High [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Krieger, Marvin. John Campbell Dancy Jr., editor and public official, was born in Tarboro, the son of John C. Dancy, Sr., an enslaved person who became a freeman and, after the Civil War, was a builder and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Steven. Willis Haynie Davenport, an African American educational leader, was born on August 18, 1900 in Burgess, Virginia to parents Addie Haynie and Warner Davenport. He worked for the Greenville, North [...] (from North Carolina's First Ladies: 1891-2001, North Carolina Historical Publications.)

by Hunter, Crystal. Born in Wilmington, N.C. in 1785, to a free mother and an enslaved father, David Walker, although deemed free by law, was no stranger to the “avaricious” (a term he uses throughout the Appeal to [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Bastin, Bruce. Gary Davis, a blind black street singer and minister, was born in Laurens, S.C., to a farming family and was raised by his grandmother. As a young man he joined the steady stream of rural blacks who [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I met Kenny Davis during the recent commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Wilmington race riot of 1898. A century ago, on Nov. 10, 1898, a white mob massacred many blacks and seized the city [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Wrenn, Tony P. Day, Thomas by Tony P. Wrenn, 1986; Revised by Jared Dease, Government and Heritage Library, December 2022.   See also: Thomas Day, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Umfleet, LeRae. Thomas Day by LeRae Umfleet Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Schutz, J. Christopher, Stoesen, Alexander R. The "Death to the Klan" March, which took place in Greensboro in late 1979, involved a violent showdown between members of the Communist Workers Party (CWP), the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), and a neo-Nazi [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Reid, Elizabeth Davis. Henry Beard Delany was the first black man to become an Episcopal bishop in North Carolina and only the second in the United States; he was also an educator. He was born in St. Mary's, Ga., the son [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Barton, Bruce. Double Voting: A Personal Account "'Double Voting' in Robeson County: A Reminder of an Unequal Past" by Bruce Barton Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Fall [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Inscoe, John C. Dred, published in 1856, was Harriet Beecher Stowe's much-anticipated sequel to Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852) in which she sought to further fan the flames of antislavery sentiment. The book was a [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Drinking fountain on the county courthouse lawnAn African American boy stands at an outdoor drinking fountain. A sign on a nearby tree marks the fountain as [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Warlick, Kenneth. Dudley, James Benson by Kenneth Warlick, 1986; Revised by NC Government & Heritage Library, January 2023.  November 2, 1859 – April 4, 1925 See also: Susan Wright Sampson [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stewart, Shavon. Dudley, Susan Wright Sampson (Susie B.) ca. 1852-10 April 1933 By Shavon Stewart, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, 2019; Revised December 2022. See also: [...] (from The Way We Lived in North Carolina, NC Office of Archives and History and UNC Press.)

by Edinger, Lois V. Duncan, Samuel Edward, Jr., educator and college president, was born in Madisonville, Ky., the oldest of seven children of Samuel E. and Lena B. Duncan. At a time when Black Americans did not find it [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Causey, Ellen Fitzgibbons. Dunmore's Ethiopian Regiment consisted of freedom-seeking enslaved people who served as English troops under the last royal governor of Virginia, Lord John Dunmore. In November 1775 Dunmore, who [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bates, Doris McLean. Wilson Vash Eagleson II A Tuskegee Airman 1920 - 2006 by Doris McLean Bates Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian, Fall 2003. Tar Heel Junior Historian Association, NC [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Goldfield, David R. During the late 17th century, settlement in North Carolina proceeded from Virginia migration, first into the Albemarle region, then into the Pamlico district. By 1710, the new sparsely settled [...] (from North Carolina Atlas Revisited.)

by Agan, Kelly, Davis, Sarajanee. Helen Edmonds was an American historian, university professor and civic leader. She is especially noted for her 1947 Ph.D. dissertation as well as her thirty-six-year career at North Carolina Central [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Reid, G. W. Alfonso Elder, college president, was the son of Lucy Lillian Phinizy and Thomas J. Elder, of Sandersville, Ga., who were also the parents of Blanche and Charles Elder. Alfonso received his early [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Elizabeth City State University by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006 See also: University of North Carolina System; Historically Black Colleges and Universities for K-8 [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Reid, Elizabeth Davis. Ellison, Stewart by Elizabeth Davis Reid, 1986; Updated by NC Government & Heritage Library, August 2022. March 8, 1832 - October 24, 1899 Stewart Ellison, building contractor [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Towles, Louis P. Emancipation Day by Louis P. Towles, 2006; Revised October 2022. Emancipation Day in North Carolina was initiated on 1 Jan. 1865 at Union-occupied New Bern. It [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Steven. Eppes, Charles Montgomery By Steven A. Hill. Copyright 2017. Published with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. 25 Dec 1858 - 31 Jul 1942 See also: [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Hill, Steven. Eppes, Henry By Steven A. Hill. Copyright 2017. Published with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. 16 Sept 1830 - 29 Jan 1903 See also: Eppes, Charles [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Justesen, Benjamin R. The North Carolina State Equal Rights League, founded in 1865, grew out of the state's first freedmen's convention, held in Raleigh on 29 Sept. 1865. Although the state was ruled by Presidential [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Underhill, Michelle Czaikowski. Published in 1910, An Era of Progress and Promise documents topics discussed and explored at the Clifton Conference, held August 18-20, 1908 at the home of W. N. Hartshorn in Clifton, Massachusetts. [...] (from NC Digital Collections.)

by Allen, Christy E. Era of Progress and Promise: Browse biographies by Christy E. Allen, 2009. Book compiled by W. N. Hartshorn of Clifton, Massachusetts in 1910, concerning the Clifton Conference of [...] (from NC Digital Collections.)

by Allen, Christy E. Era of Progress and Promise: Browse institutions by location by Christy E. Allen, 2009. See also: Era of Progress and Promise Book compiled by W. N. Hartshorn of Clifton, Massachusetts in [...] (from NC Digital Collections.)

by Allen, Christy E. Era of Progress and Promise: Browse institutions by name by Christy E. Allen, 2009. Book compiled by W. N. Hartshorn of Clifton, Massachusetts in 1910, concerning the Clifton Conference of [...] (from NC Digital Collections.)

by Moore, David G. Estatoe Path was a long-established Indian trail that linked the eighteenth-century Cherokee Lower Towns of northwestern South Carolina and northeastern Georgia with the French Broad River Valley in [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Anderson, William L. The Battle of Etchoe took place during the Cherokee War of 1760-61 between the Cherokee and the English. That war, a subconflict within the French and Indian War, began when whites murdered a number [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Rives, Ralph Hardee. Henry Evans, popular Black preacher, was credited with being "the father of the Methodist Church, white and Black, in Fayetteville, and the best preacher of his time in that quarter," according to [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Excerpt from interview with Louella Odessa Saunders AmaExcerpt from interview with Louella Odessa Saunders AmaMrs. Amar talks about sewing and self-sufficiency in the [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Steelman, Lala Carr. Exodusters were African Americans who fled North Carolina because of economic and political grievances after the Reconstruction era. Although there was a steady trickle of Black emigrants from the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . This page gathers resources in NCpedia that cover the history and heritage of African Americans in North Carolina from the colonial era to the present day.  It does not include all resources in [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Deveneaux, Gustav H. K. Faduma, Orishatukeh by Gustav H. K. Deveneaux (1855–25 Jan. 1946) Orishatukeh Faduma, teacher and minister, was born in Guyana, South America (formerly British Guiana), to John and Omolofi [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Fayetteville State University by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006 See also: University of North Carolina System; Historically Black Colleges and Universities for K-8 [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited Alfred Fisher in Pamlico County, three hours east of Raleigh. Now retired from his job as a chemist at a Weyerhaeuser pulp mill, he is active in the county historical society and has been [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Krieger, Marvin. Robert George Fitzgerald, soldier, farmer, educator, and businessman, was born to Thomas Charles Fitzgerald (ca. 1808–1879) and Sarah Ann Burton Fitzgerald (ca. 1818–ca. 1889) in New Castle County, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Franke, Matthew. Roberta Flack is a Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, and pianist renowned for her smooth, "velvety" voice. Born in Black Mountain in Buncombe County on February 10, 1937, she was one of four [...] (from NCpedia.)

by . This illustration from Charles Waddell Chesnutt's 1901 short story "The Bouquet" shows Sophy, an African American girl, peering through the gate of a cemetery that was open to whites only. The [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Cecelski, David S. Two months earlier, on Feb. 1, 1960, four black students at North Carolina A&T sat down at a "whites only" lunch counter at a Woolworth's Department Store in Greensboro. They politely requested [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Farley, Jennifer. This African chant mourns the loss of Olaudah Equiano, an eleven-year-old boy who, in 1755, was kidnapped from his home in what is now Nigeria. He was purchased by a captain in the British Royal [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by . In the early 1970s, a one-of-a-kind artist lived near Elm City—the blues guitarist, singer, and musical storyteller John Henry Fortescue. Known as Guitar Shorty, Fortescue—who was originally from [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by Hollingsworth, Biff, West, Tim. Foster, Allen by Biff Hollingsworth and Tim West, Special Collections at Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2008 ? - January 24, 1936 In the summer of 1935, a [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by . [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Parramore, Thomas C. Frank Johnson's Band was a popular brass ensemble of black musicians that played frequently at health spas, balls, tournaments, state fairs, and other occasions from the 1830s to about 1870. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Tetterton, Beverly. Freedman's Savings and Trust Company by Beverly Tetterton, 2006; Revised October 2022. The Freedman's Savings and Trust Company, universally known as the Freedman's Bank, was chartered on 3 [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue. The Freedmen's Bureau, officially the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, was created by Congress in 1865 after months of debate. The Freedmen's Bureau controlled abandoned and [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Jones, H. G. Freedmen's conventions in 1865 and 1866 voiced the aspirations of Black North Carolinians, both those previously classified as free and formerly enslaved. The Civil War had been over only five months [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Michael. Freedom Rallies: Williamston, N.C., 1963 By Michael Hill Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Bond, Mattison. Freelon, Philip Goodwin By Mattison Bond, June 2023 March 26, 1953- July 9, 2019 Philip Freelon was an American architect. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Elizabeth Neal Freelon [...] (from ANCHOR: A North Carolina History Online Resource.)

by Woodard, John R., Jr. Ralf Freeman, Baptist minister, was born enslaved in Anson County; his parents are not known. He belonged to John Culpeper, a Baptist minister and pastor of the Rocky River Baptist Church, Anson [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Spicer, Shirl. With fists raised, members of the audience paid homage to “The Great Agitator” on July 24, 2004, as North Carolina laid to rest one of its greatest unsung heroes of the Civil Rights movement—Golden [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Bastin, Bruce. Allen, Fulton by Bruce Bastin 10 July 1907-13 Feb. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Andrews, William L. David Bryant Fulton, Black polemicist and author, was born in Fayetteville to Benjamin and Lavinia Robinson Fulton. His early childhood was spent in the Fayetteville area, but he grew up in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Steven. Garrett, Denison Dover By Steven A. Hill. Copyright 2017. Published with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. 6 May 1915 - 28 May 2011 Denison Dover [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Williams, Wiley J. The General Education Board (GEB) was a philanthropic organization endowed by the Rockefeller family and chartered in 1903 by the U.S. Congress for "the promotion of education in the United States of [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Geneva Perry: From the International Sweethearts of Rhythm to Adkin High by the North Carolina Arts Council. Originally published in African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina, [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by . George Henry WhiteGeorge Henry White (1852-1918) represented North Carolina's second district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1897 to [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Krieger, Marvin. Goler, William Harvey by Marvin Krieger, 1986 1 Jan. 1846–22 Feb. 1939 William Harvey Goler, educator, church leader, and president of Livingstone College, Salisbury, was born in Halifax, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Born in 1916, Capt. Eugene W. Gore worked his way up from kitchen boy to become one of the first African-American captains in the great menhaden fishing fleet of North Carolina. I talked with him at [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Mitchell, Samantha. Grandy, Moses by Samantha Mitchell, North Carolina State University, 2013; Revised April 2022 b.1786? Moses Grandy was a skilled seaman and black antislavery activist born into slavery [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Pollitt, Phoebe Ann. Originally published in "North Carolina Nursing History." Republished with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. Please submit permission requests for other uses [...] (from Appalachian State University.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited with Gary Grant in Tillery, a rural, African-American community in Halifax County, 100 miles northeast of Raleigh. Raised in an experimental resettlement community in Tillery in which FDR's [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by McKinley, Cynthia Risser, McKinley, Shepherd W. The Great Migration and North Carolina by Dr. Shepherd W. McKinley and Cynthia Risser McKinley Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Spring 2006. Tar Heel Junior [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Andrews, William L. John Patterson Green was a black American attorney, legislator, and author who was born in New Bern. He was the only son of John Rice Green, a tailor, and Temperance Durden Green, a [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Huaman, Jaime. Greensboro Four: David Richmond, Franklin McCain, Ezell Blair Jr. (Jibreel Khazan), Joe McNeil Civil Rights Sit-Ins at Woolworth by Jaime Huaman, Government & Heritage Library, [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Hill, Michael. The New England-based American Missionary Association (AMA) was founded in 1846 by the Congregational Church and was dedicated to promoting antislavery feeling North and South. Among its early [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Kassa, Kemisa. Edward “Ned” Griffin (Griffis, Griffes, Griffen) was a multiracial landowner and soldier during the American Revolution. Griffin was likely born in the mid-18th century. Edward’s true age, as well as [...] (from NCpedia.)

by . Groves, Harry E. By University of North Carolina Libraries, 1999 4 Sep 1921 - 24 Aug 2013 Harry E. Groves was born in Manitou Springs, Colo., on 4 September 1921. An African American in a [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Agan, Kelly. Hammocks Beach State Park By North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation, 2015; Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2015 https://www.ncparks.gov/ Established: 1961 GPS [...] (from NC Division of Parks and Recreation, NC Dept. of Natural and Cultural Resources.)

by London, Lawrence F. Bravid Washington Harris, Episcopal priest and bishop, was born in Warrenton, the son of Bravid Washington and Margaret Burgess Harris. After receiving his preparatory education in Warrenton, he [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Alexander, Roberta Sue. James Henry Harris, North Carolina politician, was born in Granville County. Described as "a base born boy of color," he was apprenticed on 3 Aug. 1840 to Charles Allen to learn the carpenter trade; [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Carrier, Sarah. Dr. Reginald Armistice Hawkins, nicknamed “Hawk,” was a lifelong civil rights activist who played a central role in integrating Charlotte schools, hospitals, and public spaces, and in 1968 became the [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Macfie, John. William B. Henderson, African-American state senator, farmer, and resident of Middleburg, was elected to the North Carolina General Assembly in 1892 as a Republican representative from the Eleventh [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wells, Mike "Lightnin'". For more than sixty years, George Higgs, of Tarboro in Edgecombe County, has been playing and singing the blues in his community and in places as far away as Australia and Switzerland—carrying on a [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited with master plasterer William M. Hill at his home in Clinton, an hour southeast of Raleigh. At age 77, he is renowned for his painstaking restorations of some of the state's most historic [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. Historically Black Colleges and Universities: Marching to the beat of Freedom By Sarajanee Davis, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2019 Have you ever heard the term HBCU? It stands [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Shaber, Sarah R. Annie Wealthy Holland, educator, was born in Isle of Wight County, Va., on a plot of land contiguous to the Wealthy plantation, where her grandmother was enslaved. She was the daughter of John [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bell, John L., Jr. James Walker Hood, clergyman, educator, and bishop, the son of Levi and Harriet Walker Hood, was born on the farm of Ephraim Jackson in Chester County, Pa., nine miles from Wilmington, Del. His [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wegner, Ansley Herring. Hopkins, Moses Aaron by Ansley Wegner Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2006. http://www.ncmarkers.com December 25, 1846 - August 7, 1886 Moses Aaron Hopkins, educator [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by . Composite of scenes of Nat Turner's rebellion. Caption reads: The Scenes which the above Plate is designed to repesent are -- Fig. 1. A Mother intreating for the lives of her Children. -- 2. Mr [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Walser, Richard. George Moses Horton, poet, was born enslaved by William Horton in Northampton County. George Moses Horton's mother, his five older half sisters, his younger brother and three sisters were also [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bennington, Catherine Myers. Aaron Burtis Hunter, Episcopal clergyman, educator, book collector, and philanthropist, was born in Philadelphia, Pa., the son of John C. and Sarah A. Clark Hunter. After graduation from public [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Byrd, Robert L. Charles Norfleet Hunter, educator, was born in Raleigh at the home of his father, Osborne Hunter, a black artisan. His mother, Mary Hunter, was an enslaved woman who was enslaved by William [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Elmore, Joseph E. John Adams Hyman, politician, state senator, and congressman, was born enslaved near Warrenton, Warren County. Sold and sent to Alabama, he returned to Warren County in 1865 a free man. With the rise [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Calhoon, Robert M. Immanuel College in Greensboro was a residential high school, junior college, and theological seminary for African Americans operated by the Missouri Synod of the Lutheran Church from 1903 to 1961. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Faulkner, Ronnie W. The Impending Crisis of the South by Ronnie W. Faulkner, 2006 The Impending Crisis of the South, by Rowan County born abolitionist Hinton Rowan Helper (1829-1909), was published by A. B. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Rives, Ralph Hardee. Inborden, Thomas Sewell by Ralph Hardee Rives, 1988 6 Jan. 1865–10 Mar. 1951 See also: Brick School; Era of Progress and Promise Thomas Sewell Inborden, a Black educator, was born near [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Diem, Gordon Neal. Insurance by Gordon Neal Diem, 2006; Revised October 2022. See also: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina; Durham Life Insurance Company; Jefferson-Pilot Corporation; North [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Davis, Lenwood. Many people are unaware of the numerous inventions and scientific breakthroughs that have happened in North Carolina. They probably have heard of Wilbur and Orville Wright and the first sustained, [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Eckard, Max. Jermain Lamar Cole, better known by his stage name, J. Cole, is a Grammy-nominated rapper, singer and producer from Fayetteville, NC. In 2009, he became the first artist to be signed to Jay-Z's Roc [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Pollitt, Phoebe Ann. Originally published in "North Carolina Nursing History." Republished with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. Please submit permission requests for other uses [...] (from Appalachian State University.)

by Yellin, Jean Fagan. Harriet Jacobs by Jean Fagan Yellin, Revised March 2022 by NC Government and Heritage Library  See also: Harriet Ann Jacobs for K-8 students February 11, 1813 [or 1815] - March 7, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. Jacobs, Harriet Ann Writing for Women By Sarajanee Davis, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2019 From the NCpedia K-8 Collection February 11, 1813-March 7, 1897 Do you think you [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by . James Brown Band: "Almost Like a Kinston Band" by the North Carolina Arts Council. Originally published in African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina, copyright 2013. Republished [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by Zipf, Karin Lorene. James City in Craven County evolved during the Civil War and Reconstruction years as an independent community of Black and African American North Carolinians, most of whom had been [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Williams, Wiley J. The Jeanes Fund, the popular name for the Negro Rural School Fund of the Anna T. Jeanes Foundation, was endowed by a Philadelphia Quaker benefactor in 1907 with $1 million. The original board of [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited Ammie Jenkins in Spring Lake, in Cumberland County, 50 miles south of Raleigh. She is one of the state's most dynamic advocates for black farming and landownership. As the founder and [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Jones, H. G. Lawrence Joel, the first black man to receive the Medal of Honor for battlefield heroism, was born in the slums of Winston-Salem to Trenton and Mary Ellen Joel, but at age eight he was unofficially [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly, Davis, Sarajanee. Chavis, John Pioneering Teacher & Preacher   By Sarajanee Davis and Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2020 From the NCpedia K-8 Collection c. [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Martin, James I., Sr. Johnson C. Smith University by James I. Martin Sr., 2006; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, June 2023 See Also: Historically Black Colleges and Universities; Private [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Recently, Dr. Henry Vanderbilt Johnson Jr. shared a story with me about an unsung little moment in our state's civil rights history: a cafe brawl in Engelhard, a fishing village in Hyde County. The [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Johnson, Charles. Johnson, Clifton Earl By Charles D. Johnson, North Carolina Central University, 2020 Clifton Earl “Cliff” Johnson was a pioneer African American jurist. He was born in 1941 in Williamston, [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Gatewood, Willard B., Jr. Johnson, Edward Austin Willard B. Gatewood, Jr., 1988; Revised March 2022, Government & Heritage Library  Related Entries: Civil Rights; African Americans; Slavery 23 Nov. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Parrish, Thomas, IV. Janie Settles was the the first African-American female rescue chief in North Carolina. She was born and grew up in Littleton in Halifax County, the youngest of the fourteen children of John Wesley [...] (from NCpedia.)

by . Jones Lake State Park By North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation, 2015 https://ncparks.gov/ Established: 1939 GPS Coordinates: 34.682743, -78.595423 Size: 1,669 acres See also: [...] (from NC Division of Parks and Recreation, NC Dept. of Natural and Cultural Resources.)

by Cecelski, David S. Historian Alice Eley Jones and I recently got into her Jeep and went in search of herring -- or at least the history of herring fishing. We were in Murfreesboro, her hometown. Herring have been an [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Beck, Raymond L. Jones, James Henry by Raymond L. Beck, 1988; Revised by NC Government & Heritage Library, May 2022 (March 27) 1831–April 8, 1921 James Henry Jones, coachman and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. John Jones, businessman and leader for black peoples' rights, was born in Greene County, the son of a German man named Bromfield and his free multiracial mother. Afraid that his father would [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I recently joined Marvin Tupper Jones at his family's annual reunion and fish fry. We were in Pleasant Plains, part of an extraordinary, 9-mile-long swath of land in the state's rural, northeast [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Cecelski, David S. Marvin Jones started working for the Export Leaf Tobacco Company in Wilson in 1946. At that time, Wilson was the largest bright-leaf tobacco market in the world. The buying, processing and selling of [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Leder, Eric. Thomas H. Jones was a self-educated abolitionist, minister, and author who spent much of his early life in Wilmington, North Carolina. Most information about Jones is from his popular autobiography [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Case, Steven. Michael Jordan may have been born in Brooklyn, but North Carolina claims him as one of our own. The Jordan family moved to North Carolina when Michael Jordan was very small and he grew up in [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Thompson, Taylor. Think about the shoes you’ve seen others wear. Have you ever seen someone wearing Air Jordans? If so, you might know that they get their name from Michael Jordan. He is a legendary basketball player. [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Cross, Jerry L. Joseph Keasbey Brick Agricultural, Industrial, and Normal School (Brick School): 1895-1933 By Jerry Cross, 1979 Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by . In 1947 the Congress of Racial Equality & local citizens, black & white, protested bus segregation. Setting out from Washington, D.C., "freedom riders" tested compliance with a U.S. Supreme [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Bell-Kite, Diana, Agan, Kelly. KAY, WILLIE VIRGINIA OTEY 17 Mar. 1894 – 25 Sept. 1992 By Diana Bell-Kite, NC Museum of History and Kelly Agan, NC Government & Heritage Library, 2016 “You have to like what you do, [...] (from North Carolina Museum of History.)

by Wegner, Ansley Herring. Keckly (Keckley), Elizabeth Hobbs by Ansley Wegner, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2013; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, January [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by . Kinston's Tobacco Warehouses: Music Venues and Dance Halls by the North Carolina Arts Council.  Originally published in African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina, copyright [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Kittrell College by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006 See also: Historically Black Colleges and Universities; Era of Progress and Promise: Book overview; Historically Black Colleges and [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Rudolph Knight is the caretaker of Tarboro's African-American past. Even as a child, he treasured his elders' stories about the Eastern North Carolina town, especially the stories from the 1880s and [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Towles, Louis P. Land Grant Colleges by Louis P. Towles, 2006 See also: North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University; North Carolina State University; Land Grants Land Grant Colleges [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cotten, Alice R. Lunsford Lane was an enslaved then free black businessman, and lecturer. He was the only child of Edward and Clarissa Lane, who were enslaved people who were from Raleigh. His parents [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Howard, Joshua. Tar Heels at Harper's Ferry, October 16-18, 1859: Lewis S. Leary By Joshua Howard, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2011; Revised March 2020 by NC Government and Heritage [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Graham, Nicholas. Whenever Chapel Hill, North Carolina elected a new mayor, few people outside of the small college town paid much attention. But when the 1969 mayoral race came to a close, newspapers and magazines [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Murray, Elizabeth D. R. The Leonard Medical School, established in Raleigh by Shaw University in 1880, was the first four-year medical school in the United States and trained more than 400 Black and African American [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Case, Steven. Ray Charles Leonard, known as the boxing champion "Sugar Ray" Leonard (after the champion boxer Sugar Ray Robinson), was born on May 17, 1956 in Wilmington, North Carolina to Getha Leonard and [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Cecelski, David S. I met Joe Lewis in Louisburg, the county seat of Franklin County, 25 miles northeast of Raleigh. A vigorous 81-year-old who still breaks and trains horses, Lewis has never considered himself a civil [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Livingstone College by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006; Additional research provided by Kelly Agan; Revised December 2021 See also: Private Education; Private Higher Education; Historically [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. On April 9, 1968, 16-year-old Fred Lockamy and four of his longtime friends decided to strike back at the Ku Klux Klan by burning down its local meeting hall. They lived in a black neighborhood in [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Smith, Donald B. Long Lance, Buffalo Child [Clark Long, Sylvester]  by Donald B. Smith, 1991; Revised by Jared Dease, Government and Heritage Library, December 2022 1 Dec. 1890–20 Mar. 1932 Buffalo [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Pronovost, Emily, von der Heide, Mary. Lowe, Dazelle Foster By Mary von der Heide and Emily Pronovost, NCSU Libraries, 2007 Originally published in Green 'N' Growing, The History of Home Demonstration and 4-H Youth Development in [...] (from NCSU Libraries.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. On April 27, 2015, Loretta Lynch was sworn in as Attorney General of the United States. President Barack Obama nominated Lynch to succeed Eric Holder. Lynch became the first African American woman to [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Baker, Bruce E. Lynching, the unlawful killing of a person by a mob and one of the most extreme forms of community sanction, occurred in North Carolina on numerous occasions. The term originally referred to [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gillespie, James D. Mabley, Jackie (Moms) by James D. Gillespie 1898–23 May 1975 (1898–23 May 1975), comedienne and actress, was born Loretta Mary Aiken in Brevard, the daughter of "Uncle" Jim and Mary Aiken. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Maceo and Melvin Parker: Early Influences by the North Carolina Arts Council. Originally published in African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina, copyright 2013. Republished with [...] (from North Carolina Arts Council.)

by . Madge Hopkins attended segregated schools in Charlotte, North Carolina. She remembers hearing abut Dorothy Counts, a young woman she knew through church, becoming one of the first four students to [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Toosi, Nahal. Malcolm X Liberation University (MXLU), an experimental institution of higher education focusing on African American history and life, opened in Durham in October 1969. Named for slain black leader [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Miller, Daniel R. Manly, Alex by Daniel R. Miller, 1991; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, January 2023 fl. 1895–98 See also: Manly, Alex (from NC Office of Archives and History); The [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Michael, Umfleet, LeRae. Alex Manly was born near Raleigh in 1866. Family tradition maintains that his father was Charles Manly, who served as governor of North Carolina from 1849 to 1851. There is some confusion about [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Norris, David A., Kirkman, Roger N. Manumission societies began as an eighteenth-century movement to abolish slavery through voluntary emancipation. The undertaking was initiated primarily by the Society of Friends (Quakers) on grounds [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Smith, William S., Jr. Maroons by William S. Smith, 2006 See also: African Americans; Great Dismal Swamp; Slave Rebellions; [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . A marriage certificate issued by the Freedmen's Bureau legally recognizing the marriage of Sarah Ann to Benjamin Berry Manson, who were formerly enslaved in Tennessee. Sarah and B. B. had [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . A speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. in Rocky Mount on November 27, 1962, has drawn much attention. In that address, before 1,800 in the gymnasium at Booker T. Washington High School (that building [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Cecelski, David S. Eddie McCoy stands at the heart of historian Tim Tyson's stirring new memoir, "Blood Done Sign My Name." The book tells the heart-rending story of the 1970 racial murder of a black man named Henry [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by . Men, women, and children using shovels and brooms to sweep a street during a clean-up campaign at McDougal Terrace in Durham, North Carolina, March, 1968. Barnes took pictures of the locals, [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Andrews, William L. James Ephraim McGirt, Black poet, editor, and publisher, was born in Robeson County near the town of Lumberton. The son of Madison and Ellen Townsend McGirt, he grew up on the family farm and was [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Umfleet, LeRae. Millie-Christine McKoy by LeRae Umfleet, 2010 Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Kenzer, Robert C. George Allen Mebane was a Black educator, legislator, editor, businessman, and writer. He was born at the Hermitage in Bertie County to enslaved parents. His father was Allen Mebane. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Murray, Elizabeth D. R. Julius Melbourn, said to have been born on 4 July 1790 in Wake County, was apparently a fictitious character invented to perpetrate a literary hoax. In 1847, the firm of Hall and Dickson in Syracuse, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Foote, Margaret, Kress, Kelly. The Menhaden Chanteymen are a group of retired African American fishermen who previously worked off the coast near Beaufort. The group, during their working years, used singing to synchronize the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Weare, Walter B. John Merrick, black businessman, community leader, and founder of the North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company, was born in Sampson County, the son of an enslaved mother; his father is unknown. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stewart, James. Mitchell, John William By James Stewart, NCSU Libraries, 2015 Originally published as "Life of An Extension Agent: John W. Mitchell," Special Collections News, NCSU Libraries, December 11, [...] (from NCSU Libraries.)

by Weare, Walter B. Aaron McDuffie Moore, black physician, businessman, and humanitarian, was born in Columbus County. His parents belonged to the third generation of Negro-Indian-Caucasian families who had owned land [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Ingram, Charles M. Peter Weddick Moore, educator, was born near Faison in Duplin County, the son of Weddick and Alecy Thompson Moore, both enslaved people. His father allegedly was killed by the Ku Klux Klan during [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Moore, William John by William S. Powell, 1991 4 Apr. 1837–post-1901 See also:  African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (from the Encyclopedia of North Carolina); African Methodist [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Athenia Moses will soon be honored by the Goldsboro-Wayne County branch of the NAACP for something that she did more than half a century ago. At a banquet on Feb. 11, the NAACP will recognize her and [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by . Mrs. Cornelia Neal Mrs. Cornelia Neal and two other women are pictured seated on a bed, stringing tobacco bags. There is a stove visible in the [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . Mrs. Emma Mitchell, Reidsville, N.C. Mrs. Emma Mitchell and her family are pictured standing on the front porch of their [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . Mrs. Eugenia Allen, Reidsville, N.C. Mrs. Eugenia Allen is pictured seated on a bed in her house. One of her grandchildren is pictured in front of the bed on a [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Wegner, Ansley Herring. Murray, Anna Pauline (Pauli) 20 Nov.1910 - 1 Jul. 1985 By Ansley Wegner, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2010; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, January [...] (from NCpedia.)

by . In 2019, the North Carolina African American Heritage Commission published a children's board book titled My N.C. from A to Z. The book was written by folklorist Michelle Lanier and illustrated by [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Gavins, Raymond, Vocci, Robert Blair. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People by Raymond Gavins, 2006 Additional research provided by Robert Blair Vocci. The National Association for the Advancement of [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Kenzer, Robert C. National Negro Business League by Robert C. Kenzer, 2006 See also: Colored Merchants Association The National Negro Business League was created by Booker T. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. Is Nina Simone one of them? The singer was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina. She learned to play the piano at only three years old. Although her family had limited financial [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006 See also: Historically Black Colleges and Universities for K-8 Students North Carolina [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Martin, James I., Sr. The North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE) was formed in 1970 with the union of the white North Carolina Education Association and the black North Carolina Teachers Association. Its earliest [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. North Carolina Central University by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006 See also: Historically Black Colleges and Universities for K-8 Students North Carolina Central University in Durham [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by McKown, Harry W., Jr. North Carolina Colored Industrial Association Fair by Harry McKown UNC - North Carolina Collection, 2009. "This Month in North Carolina History" series. See also: North Carolina Industrial [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Bond, Mattison. The North Carolina Freedom Park is located in downtown Raleigh on the corner of Wilmington and Lane Streets, behind the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources’ Archives and History/State [...] (from ANCHOR: A North Carolina History Online Resource.)

by Alston, Christine. North Carolina Historically Black Colleges and Universities Timeline by Christine Alston and Kelly Agan, 2016. See also: Historically Black Colleges and Universities for K-8 [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Murray, Elizabeth D. R. The North Carolina Industrial Association (NCIA), an organization of African American civic leaders formed in 1879, was known primarily for its presentation of the annual North Carolina Industrial [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by McKown, Harry W., Jr. On the first of April 1899 the North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company opened for business in Durham, North Carolina. The first month’s collections, after the payment of commissions, amounted [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by . North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company officers North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company officers, Durham, NC. Left to right: A.M. Moore, John M. Avery, John Merrick, Ed Merrick, C.C. [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by . North Carolina Quilts By Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Freeze, Gary. North Carolina has always been a place where the old and the new live side by side. The time period from 1953 to 2003 is no different. Although patterns from the past, such as eating barbecue or [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Justesen, Benjamin R. North Carolina Teachers Association by Benjamin R. Justesen, 2006 See also: North Carolina Association of Educators;  Shepard, James Edward (UNC Press, DNCB); Parent-Teacher [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. North Carolina Visionary Artists By Sarajanee Davis, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2020 Do you know what the official folk art of North Carolina is? Well, if your first question is [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by . North Carolina's Black WWII ExperiencePodcast of a UNC-TV Black Issues Forum [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Agan, Kelly, Alston, Christine. North Carolina's Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) See also: Historically Black Colleges and Universities for K-8 Students   Prior to the conclusion of the Civil [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Elmore, Joseph E. James Edward O'Hara, congressman, Halifax county commissioner, black politician, educator, and lawyer, was born in New York City, the son of an Irish seaman and a West Indian woman. At age six, he [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Murray, Elizabeth D. R. O'Kelly, Berry by Elizabeth Davis Reid Murray, 1991; Revised by Jared Dease, Government and Heritage Library, December 2022 ca. 1861–14 Mar. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . One Vote Less This cartoon from 1868 depicts an African-American killed by the Ku Klux Klan, with the caption "One Vote [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. Did you think about sunny beaches and water activities? These are some of the things that make the Outer Banks one of the most popular areas to visit in the United States. The area is also very [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Bell, John L., Jr. Lawrence Augustus Oxley, social worker and civil servant, was born in Boston, Mass., the son of William Junius Brutus and Alice Agatha Martin Oxley. His parents sent him to Prospect Union Preparatory [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Palmer Memorial Institute by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, May 2023 See also: Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum. The Palmer Memorial [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Carrier, Sarah. Lenoir County native Kellis Earl Parker, an accomplished lawyer, activist, scholar, and musician, was born January 13, 1942 in Kinston, North Carolina. In addition to his distinguished career, Parker [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Cecelski, David S. Maceo Parker: These Kids are Fantastic by David Cecelski. "Listening to History," News & Observer. Published 6/13/2004. Copyrighted. Reprinted with permission. See also Maceo and [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by . In this black and white photograph, a stream of black and white people are walking down a street in what appears to be a mostly residential neighborhood. Some are carrying American flags while a few [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Agan, Kelly, Davis, Sarajanee. Murray, Pauli Individual perseverance and community power By Sarajanee Davis and Kelly Agan, N.C.Government & Heritage Library, 2020; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Thuesen, Sarah C. On 17 May 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court declared in Brown v. Board of Education that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. In the years that followed, the southern states [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I met Mayor Delia Perkins at the town hall of Princeville, a historic little town next to the Tar River, 70 miles east of Raleigh. Founded by former slaves in 1865, Princeville was the first town in [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Uzzell, Odell. Perry, Samuel L. by Odell Uzzell, 1994; Revised October 2022. Related Entries: African American; Civil Rights; Transportation; Exodusters b. 1849 Samuel L. Perry, teacher and civil rights [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Eckard, Max. Phonte by Max Eckard, 2012. Years active: 1998-present "I do this all for hip-hop!/ I'm lying...I do this...for my...mortgage...for my [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Anderson, Jean B. Planters and Slaves: 1770-1820 By Elizabeth A. Fenn, Peter H. Wood, Harry L. Watson, Thomas H. Clayton, Sydney Nathans, Thomas C. Parramore, and Jean B. Anderson; Maps by Mark Anderson Moore. [...] (from The Way We Lived in North Carolina, NC Office of Archives and History and UNC Press.)

by London, Lawrence F. John Henry Mingo Pollard, Episcopal clergyman, was born in Lunenburg County, Va. He read for orders in Petersburg, Va., under the direction of the Reverend Giles B. Cooke, John D. Keiley, and the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited Sallie Powell in Elizabethtown, in Bladen County, in the state's southeast corner. In the era of segregated schooling, she was one of a remarkable generation of African-American teachers [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited Sallie Powell in Elizabethtown to learn about an all-but-forgotten landmark of African-American history: the swimming beaches and campground at Jones Lake. Created in 1939, Jones Lake State [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by . Original title: "The public school children of the South-Central District of Chicago purchased $263,148. 83 in war bonds and stamps...a huge check representing enough money for 125 jeeps, two pursuit [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Inscoe, John C. Price, Joseph Charles by John Inscoe, 1994; Revised October 2022. Related Entries: Civil Rights; Civil War; African American; Historically Black Colleges and Universities 10 Feb. 1854–25 [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Michael. Princeville, an Edgecombe County town incorporated in 1885, originated in 1865 as a resettlement community for newly-emancipated enslaved people. At the close of the Civil War, when Union troops [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mazzocchi, Jay, Johnson, K. Todd, Matthews, Scott, Justesen, Benjamin R., Colomb, Nayda Swonger, Latta, E. Michael. Public Education by Benjamin R. Justesen and Scott Matthews, 2006 Additional research provided by Nayda Swonger Colomb, K. Todd Johnson, E. Michael Latta, and Jay Mazzocchi. See also: [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Campbell, Karl E. The Pupil Assignment Act was North Carolina's first and most effective legislative response to the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. On 17 May 1954 the Court declared that [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Williams, Wiley J. Radio Free Dixie was an African American, English-language radio program broadcast from Havana, Cuba from 1962 to 1965 that called upon "oppressed Negroes to rise and free themselves." Narrated by [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Summey, Virginia L. Elreta Melton Alexander was a pioneering African-American attorney from Greensboro, North Carolina. Born in Smithfield, North Carolina, she was the daughter of a Baptist minister and a teacher, and [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Agan, Kelly. Reedy Creek State Park By Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2016 Established: 1950 GPS Coordinates: 35.833731, -78.760208 Size: 1,234 [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Case, Steven. Hiram Revels was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, in approximately 1827 (the 1850 Census lists “about 1825”), but an exact birthplace has not been identified. He was born to free parents of [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by McIntyre, Pattie B. Willis Richardson, playwright, was born in Wilmington, the son of Willis Wilder and Agnes Ann Harper Richardson. After the riot of 1898, he moved with his parents from Wilmington to Washington, D.C. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Franke, Matthew. Maxwell Lemuel Roach was easily one of the most influential jazz drummers of the twentieth century. He was an innovative bandleader who participated in ensembles which pioneered both bebop and cool [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Powell, William S. Parker David Robbins, soldier, legislator, and inventor, was born in Bertie County, the son of John A. Robbins; his mother's name is unknown. A mulatto with Chowan Indian ancestors, Robbins was [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly. Have you ever heard of Jim Crow laws? In the 19th and 20th centuries, Jim Crow laws created mandatory separation of races. And they affected all aspects of everyday life for black Americans. Jim [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Hill, Steven. Bennie Robert Rountree, a Pitt County Civil Rights leader and 2018 state president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), was born on April 27, 1935. Both his parents, Leana and [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Daniels, Dennis F. The 1960 Greensboro sit-ins sparked a national movement but were not the first such action. Individual and group protest actions prior to 1960, generally isolated and often without wider impact, took [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Agan, Kelly. Royal Ice Cream Sit-In, Durham, North Carolina By Kelly Agan, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2019 Have you ever heard about the 1957 ice cream shop protest in Durham, North [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Powell, William S. Royal Knights of King David by William S. Powell, 2006 See also: North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company. The Royal Knights of King David was an organization formed in 1883 by [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Carroll, Grady L. E., Sr. Christopher Rush, second superintendent (a title later changed to bishop) of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church and a full-blooded African, was born a slave in Craven County. Whether he was [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Parramore, Thomas C. Omar Ibn Said, an Islamic scholar, was born in Futa Toro (now a part of Senegal) to a wealthy Muslim family before being enslaved in the United States and eventually North Carolina. Said [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Elmer Vanray "E.V." Wilkins was a legendary educator and black political leader in Roper, in Washington County. I recently visited with his daughter, Bunny Sanders, to learn more about his life and [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Massey, R. A., Jr. Daniel Jackson Sanders, Presbyterian clergyman, editor, and educator, one of five children of William and Laura Sanders. Sanders was born enslaved near Winnsboro, S.C. His mother was enslaved by the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Currie, Jefferson. School Desegregation "With Deliberate Speed: North Carolina and School Desegregation" by Jefferson Currie II Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Fall 2004. Tar Heel [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Sandifer, Alex, Renfer, Berry Dishong. Schools for freed peoples By Alex Sandifer and Berry Dishong Renfer Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian, Fall 2003. Tar Heel Junior Historian Association, NC Museum of [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Smythe, Andrea. Armond Wendell Scott, lawyer, municipal judge, and public speaker, was a native of Wilmington and the second of six sons born to Benjamin and Athalia Harris Scott. Benjamin Scott ran a livery stable [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Murray, Elizabeth D. R. Scruggs, Lawson Andrew by Elizabeth Reid Murray, 1994; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, February 2023 Related Entries: African American; Civil Rights; Historically Black [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Burns, Augustus M., III. Seabrook, James Ward by A. M. Burns III, 1994Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, February 2023 Related Entries: Historically Black Colleges; Civil Rights 6 Nov. 1886–26 Mar. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Sebastian, Martha Josephine Oxford (May 6, 1896 - April 24, 1948)  By Anthony Arcangeli, 2018 F.D. Bluford Library, North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University Martha [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Stewart, James, Love, Edward Lee. Dr. S. P. Sebastian was a renowned physician, surgeon, and the co-founder of two historic African-American hospitals in Greensboro, North Carolina. For 20 years he served as the college physician at [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Hatley Wadelington, Flora. Segregation in the 1920s "Assigned Places" by Flora Hatley Wadelington; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, June 2023 Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Watson, Alan D. Settlement of the Coastal Plain, 1650-1775 by Alan D. Watson Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian. Spring 1995; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, July [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by . Sgt. Gilbert "Hashmark" JohnsonSgt. Gilbert H. "Hashmark" Johnson, a veteran of service in both the Army and Navy, glares at the boots in his recruit platoon. He became a Marine in [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Shaw University by Charles W. Wadelington, 2006; Revised November 2022. See also: Private Education; Private Higher Education; Historically Black Colleges and Universities for K-8 [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Carroll, Grady L. E., Sr. Herbert Bell Shaw, bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, was born in Wilmington, the son of John Henry and Lummie Virginia Hodges Shaw. He was named for the Reverend Herbert Bell, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Judith Shaw was born and raised in New York City, but every summer of her childhood she visited her father's hometown of La Grange, 75 miles east of Raleigh. She loved the little town that calls [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by . Sheila Florence Oral History ExcerptSheila Florence was one of the first students to desegregate schools in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. When she began attending Chapel Hill Junior High School in [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Eagles, Charles W. James Edward Shepard, college president, was the oldest of twelve children born in Raleigh to the Reverend Augustus and Hattie Whitted Shepard. He attended the public schools of Raleigh before [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Louis Sheridan, farmer, free black merchant, and Liberian official, was probably the Louis Sheridan mentioned in the 1800 will of Joseph R. Gautier (d. 15 May 1807), Elizabethtown merchant, as the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte, and Charlton Heston at the 1963 March on Washington Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte, and Charlton Heston stand at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., at the [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Thomas, Karen Kruse. In 1962 dentist George Simkins, physician Alvin Blount, and other African American physicians and their patients sued Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital and Wesley Long Community Hospital in Greensboro, [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Franke, Matthew. The artist who would come to be known across the world as Nina Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon on February 21, 1933, in Tryon, North Carolina in Polk County. She was the sixth of eight [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Cecelski, David S. Dr. James Slade is the sort of impossibly old-fashioned doctor who still makes house calls and has never thought about joining an HMO. For 35 years he has been practicing pediatrics and general [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Williams, Wiley J. Slater Fund by Wiley J. Williams, 2006 See also: Jeanes Fund. In 1882 John Fox Slater, a textile manufacturer and philanthropist from Norwich, Conn., established a $1 million fund [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Schweninger, Loren. Slave Clandestine Economy by Loren Schweninger, 2006 Slave clandestine economy refers to a variety of private agricultural and business endeavors undertaken by some North Carolina enslaved [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Lamm, Alan K. The increasing number of Black enslaved people in colonial America created suspicion and fear among the general population and led to a backlash of white reaction known as slave codes. Virginia [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Inscoe, John C. Slave Names by John C. Inscoe, 2006; Revised May 2022 by NC Government & Heritage [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Salemson, Daniel J. North Carolina, unlike other southern states and perhaps due to the lack of major slave rebellions, was slow to establish formal slave patrols. South Carolina first addressed the issue in 1704, [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Parramore, Thomas C., Nash, Steven E. Slave Rebellions by Steven E. Nash and Thomas C. Parramore, 2006; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, November 2023 See also: Negro Head Road; Violence, Group Slave [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Crow, Jeffrey J., Dees-Killette, Amelia, Huff, Diane. Slavery by Jeffrey J. Crow, 2006; Revised by NC Government & Heritage Library, December 2022. Additional research provided by Amelia Dees-Killette and Diane Huff. See also: Ad [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. The Slaves' Midsummer Holiday, when enslaved laborers were permitted a few days off by their enslavers, occurred after crops were laid by and before harvesting began. On August 26, 1862 Catherine Ann [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Reidinger, Martin. Smith, Ezekiel Ezra by Martin Reidinger, 1994 23 May 1852–6 Dec. 1933 Ezekiel Ezra Smith, educator and diplomat, the son of free Black Americans Alexander and Caroline Smith, was born [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Massengill, Stephen E. Isaac Hughes Smith, black legislator, realtor, and philanthropist, was born in the Craven County area, the son of Thomas and Harriet Smith, both natives of North Carolina. Little is known about his [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Johnston, Hugh B., Jr., Eagles, Brenda M. Owen Lun West Smith, U.S. minister to Liberia and Methodist leader, was born in Giddensville, Sampson County, the son of Ollen and Maria Hicks Smith, both of African descent. As a youth he served as [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Some of the Founders of Mechanics & Farmers Bank Portrait of some of the Founders of Mechanics & Farmers Bank, Durham, NC. From the Black History Exhibit, Durham County Centennial, [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Gavins, Raymond. Soul City by Raymond Gavins, 2006 Soul City, a small town located one mile off U.S. 1 between Warrenton and Manson in Warren County, is a symbol of black economic aspiration fueled by the [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gavins, Raymond. Southern Christian Leadership Conference by Raymond Gavins, 2006 The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), established in 1957 in Atlanta and headed by Martin Luther King Jr. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Asa Timothy Spaulding, insurance company executive, was born in Columbus County, the son of Armstead and Annie Belle Lowery Spaulding. He attended the National Training School of Howard University, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Weare, Walter B. Charles Clinton Spaulding, black businessman and community leader, was born in Columbus County to parents descended from a long-standing community of free Blacklandholders in the area. A family oral [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stocker, Emmanuel. Spaulding, Charles Clinton By Emmanuel Stocker, North Carolina State University, 2013 August 1, 1874- August 1, [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Cummings, Lindy. John Carruthers Stanly was a prominent entrepreneur and land-owning free Black in New Bern in the early 19th century. He was the son of an unnamed enslaved woman and white merchant John Wright [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Brinkley, Martin H. State v. John Mann by Martin H. Brinkley, 2006; Revised by NC Government & Heritage Library, December 2022 State v. John Mann, an 1829 North Carolina Supreme Court decision, is [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Stoesen, Alexander R. State v. Manuel by Alexander R. Stoesen, 2006; Revised November 2022. State v. Manuel, argued before the North Carolina Supreme Court in 1838, was the first case to decide that a free black [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Brinkley, Martin H. State v. Negro Will by Martin H. Brinkley, 2006; Revised by Jared Dease, Government and Heritage Library, December 2022; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, June 2023 See [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly. Connie Marie Badgett Steadman grew up in Locust Hill Township in Caswell County, North Carolina. Her father, Cortelyou Badgett, was a gospel singer and choir director, and she grew up singing gospel [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Kassa, Kemisa. Steele, Murphy By Kemisa Kassa, August 2024  b. 1749-? See also: Thomas Peters, Black Loyalist and African Nationalist, The Black Pioneers Loyalist Company on ANCHOR Murphy [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Moore, Cecelia. Step Dancing by Cecelia Moore, 2006; Revised February 2022 Step dancing, or "soulstepping," is a form of competitive dance exhibition developed by African American fraternities and [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I interviewed Don Stith at the old firehouse in Warrenton, about 60 miles northeast of Raleigh. He is straight talking, brash, always moving. Above all, he is dedicated to volunteer firefighting -- [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Sanford, Mary Pettis. William Thomas Strayhorn, African American jazz musician, came from families (Strayhorns, Youngs, and Craigs) established in Hillsborough for generations; there seems to be some evidence of West [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Michael. Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee by Michael Hill, 2006 See also: Civil Rights Movement; Civil Rights in North Carolina; Civil Rights Sit-Ins; Ella Baker, NCpedia Biography; Ella [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Steven. H.B. Sugg’s parents, Bryant Sugg and Penny Briggs Sugg, were both born enslaved. Bryant Sugg told of his life as a slave and how he had fled his master’s plantation in Greene County to connect with [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Brabham, Robin. Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education by Robin Brabham, 2006 See also: Pupil Assignment Act. Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, argued before the U.S. [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. Robert Robinson Taylor, architect, was born in Wilmington, the son of Henry, a wealthy mulatto house carpenter, and Emilie Taylor, also mulatto. His father later was described as an able black [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Bastin, Bruce. Terrell, Saunders (Sonny Terry) by Bruce Bastin, 1994 Related Entries: African American; Music; Allen Fulton; Gary Davis 24 Oct. 1911–11 Mar. 1986 Saunders (Sonny Terry) Terrell, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Roanoke Island was the setting for an historic experiment during the Civil War. Following the island’s occupation by Union forces in 1862, it became a haven for African-American families from [...] (from National Park Service.)

by Agan, Kelly, Scott, Jordan. The Green Book, also known as The Negro Motorist Green Book, later known as The Negro Traveler’s Green Book in 1952, and finally the Travelers’ Green Book in 1960, was a guide for black travelers [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Agan, Kelly, Scott, Jordan. The early 1930s was the time of the Great Depression, segregation, big bands, and swing. During that decade, Raleigh's East Hargett Street was the economic and social hub for the area's African [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Parramore, Thomas C., Watson, Harry L., Nathans, Sydney, Anderson, Jean B., Clayton, Thomas H., Fenn, Elizabeth A., Wood, Peter H. By Elizabeth A. Fenn, Peter H. Wood, Harry L. Watson, Thomas H. Clayton, Sydney Nathans, Thomas C. Parramore, and Jean B. Anderson; Maps by Mark Anderson Moore. Edited by Joe A. Mobley. [...] (from The Way We Lived in North Carolina, NC Office of Archives and History and UNC Press.)

by . The "rag man" in a Jonkonnu reenactment at Bellamy Mansion in Wilmington, North Carolina. The rag man is an important part of Jonkonnu. He symbolizes the ancestors. Each fluttering rag is an ancestor [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Davis, Sarajanee. Day, Thomas  Fine-Crafted Freedom By Sarajanee Davis, N.C. Government & Heritage Library, 2019; Revised December 2022. From the NCpedia K-8 Collection Ca. 1801-1861 Do you [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Powell, William S. Thorpe, Earlie Endris by William S. Powell, 1994 Related Entries: Historically Black Universities and Colleges; Civil Rights; African American 9 Nov. 1924–30 Jan. 1989 Earlie [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Dease, Jared, Smythe, Andrea. Ishmael Titus was a Black Patriot soldier during the American Revolution. Titus was born around 1743 in Amelia County (now Lunenburg County), Virginia. Titus was born under the ownership of his first [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Cecelski, David S. Mel A. Tomlinson was one of America's most brilliant dancers in the 1970s and '80s. Raised in Raleigh's Chavis Heights public housing project, he became a star in Agnes de Mille's Heritage Theater, [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Agan, Kelly, Miles, Jeff, Smythe, Andrea. Tomlinson, Mel Alexander by Jeff Miles, North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, 2015; Revised by SLNC Government & Heritage Library, September [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Frankenberg, Dirk. [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Stewart, Alva W. Turner, Benjamin Sterling by Alva W. Stewart, 1994; Revised by Alyssa Putt, NC Government and Heritage Library, August 2022.  Related Entries: African American; Reconstruction; [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Nathans, Sydney. The Two Black Classes of Antebellum North Carolina by Sydney Nathans Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian, Fall 1996. Revised by NC Government & Heritage Library, [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Belton, Tom. Today North Carolina is a major center for aviation-related military bases. These include the Coast Guard station at Elizabeth City; the Marine Corps Air Station at Cherry Point, which provides [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Haley, John H. United States Colored Troops: Fighting for Freedom By John H. Haley, PhD Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian 50:2 (spring 2011) An elaborate ceremony took place [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Hill, Michael. The 1940s were a fertile period for labor organizing in the tobacco industry, inspiring a movement for workplace democracy that fed directly into the nascent civil rights movement. African Americans [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Eagles, Charles W. Robert Lee Vann, newspaper editor, was born in Ahoskie to Lucy Peoples, who named him for his great-grandfather, Robert Lee, and for her first employer, Albert Vann. His father is unknown. At age six [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Mazzocchi, Jay, O'Brien, Gail Williams. Violence, Group by Gail Williams O'Brien and Jay Mazzocchi, 2006; Revised by NC Government and Heritage Library, January 2023 See also:"Death to the Klan" March; Gastonia Strike; Ku Klux [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Jackson, Blyden. Islay Walden, black poet and Congregational minister, was born in Randolph County, the son of a woman named Ruth who was enslaved by James Gardner and William D. Walden, a free black man. At [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Inscoe, John C. David Walker, black author of an incendiary antislavery pamphlet, was born in Wilmington to a free mother and a slave father who died before his birth. Despite his free status inherited from his [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Carroll, Grady L. E., Sr. Walls, William Jacob by Grady L. E. Carroll, 1994 Related Entries: African American 8 May 1885–23 Apr. 1975 William Jacob Walls, Methodist clergyman, editor, and author, was born at [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by . Webb, Alfreda Wilhelmena Johnson by Aniya Laney, North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, SLNC Government and Heritage Library, January 2023 February 21, 1923 - October 14, [...] (from ANCHOR: A North Carolina History Online Resource.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. In North Carolina, aviation experienced important developments in the late 1920s. In 1928 the state’s first airmail flight landed at Lindley Field in Greensboro. By 1929 Raleigh introduced commercial [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Weare, Walter B. Wheeler, John Hervey by Walter B. Weare, 1994; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, May 2023 Related Entries: African Americans; Civil Rights 1 Jan. 1908–6 Jul. 1978 John [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Schenck, William Z. White, George Henry by William Z. Schenck, 1994 Related Entries: Legislative Branch; African Americans See also: George Henry White for K-8 students 18 Dec. 1852–28 Dec. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Thompson, Taylor. Have you ever been in a situation where people around you were being treated unfairly?  Did you want to do something about it? George Henry White found himself in the same situation. He wanted [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Cecelski, David S. I visited Rene Whitney at her home in Delta City, 20 miles northeast of little Washington. At 85 years old, she remembers when the community was not much more than a dusty, windswept field workers' [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Frederickson, Mary E. Ella May Wiggins, textile worker, balladier, and union organizer, was born in the mountains of Cherokee County, near Bryson City, the daughter of James and Elizabeth Maples May. Her father, a [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wegner, Ansley Herring. William McBrayer by Ansley Wegner Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, [...] (from Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Powell, William S. John Taylor Williams, educator, physician, and businessman, was born in the northern part of Cumberland County, the son of free black parents, Peter Williams, a successful lumberman, and Flora Ann [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. I interviewed Mabel Williams two years after her legendary husband's death. They both grew up in Monroe at a time when lynchings were common and many things that we take for granted were marked [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Agan, Kelly, Scott, Jordan. Williams, Robert Franklin by Jordan Scott and Kelly Agan, Government & Heritage Library, 2019; Revised September 2022 26 Feb. 1925-15 Oct. 1996 Robert F. Williams was an American [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Cecelski, David S. In September of 1957, a Martin County teenager named Willis Williams had the courage to tell the truth about the death of an African-American college student named Joe Cross. His story shocked North [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Cecelski, David S. When Alethea Williams-King moved to Blounts Creek, she was impressed how deeply her neighbors cared for an old plank building that used to be the community school. It was the Ware Creek Rosenwald [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Umfleet, LeRae. The Wilmington Coup of 1898 was not an act of spontaneous violence. The events of November 10, 1898, were the result of a long-range campaign strategy by Democratic Party leaders to regain political [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Stinson, Craig M. The Wilmington Ten were civil rights activists who were wrongfully convicted of conspiracy to assault emergency personnel and conspiracy to burn property with incendiary devices in 1971. Eight [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Graham, Nicholas. In early February, 1971, downtown Wilmington, N.C. was a war zone. Shots rang through the streets, traffic was blocked, and citizens were barricaded in a church. Although it took only a couple of [...] (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries.)

by Macfie, John. Dred Wimberly, member of the General Assembly, was born at Walnut Plantation near Tarboro, where he was raised and worked in the fields of James S. Battle prior to the Civil War. In 1865 Kemp Plummer [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Losse, Helen. Winston-Salem Bible College, formerly the Christian Institute, began in 1945 in a storefront building on Wheeler Street in Winston-Salem. After a shaky beginning during which the college was forced [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wadelington, Charles W. Winston-Salem State University was founded in Winston-Salem as the Slater Industrial Academy, a school for African Americans, on 28 Sept. 1892. Housed in a one-room frame structure, the school had 25 [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Hill, Steven. Witherspoon, August McIver By Steven A. Hill. Copyright 2019. Published with permission. For personal educational use and not for further distribution. 11 Sept. 1930-6 June 1994 Augustus [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Sykes, John. Women of Somerset Place by John Sykes Reprinted with permission from the Tar Heel Junior Historian, Spring 1994; Revised by SLNC Government and Heritage Library, July 2023 Tar Heel Junior [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Powell, William S. Woodward, Sara Griffith Stanley by William S. Powell, 1994 Related Entries: African American 1836–1918 Sara Griffith Stanley Woodward, anti-slavery activist and teacher and one of the [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Johnson, Elmer D. Monroe Nathan Work, bibliographer and historian, was born in Iredell County, the son of Alexander and Eliza Hobbs Work, both of whom were enslaved until the end of the Civil War. He was the youngest [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cox, Netta S. John Dudley Wray was an educator, agriculturalist, and North Carolina's first African-American Farm Makers’ Club (now 4-H club) Agent. He was born in Roxboro, North Carolina on December 10, 1885 [...] (from NC Office of Archives and History.)

by Copeland, J. Isaac. Wright, Marion Allen by J. Isaac Copeland, 1996; Additional research provided by Kelly Agan; Revised December 2021 18 Jan. 1894–14 Feb. 1983 Marion Allen Wright, attorney, citizen of the two [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Boykin, James H. Max Yergan, world religious leader, educator, reformer, and consultant on African affairs, was born in Raleigh, the son of Lizzie Yergan and the grandson of Fred Yergan, a enslaved person and [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gavins, Raymond. Young Men's Institute by Raymond Gavins, 2006 The Young Men's Institute in Asheville, backed by businessman and philanthropist George W. Vanderbilt, opened in 1893 as a community center for [...] (from Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Murray, Elizabeth D. R. Allen Lawrence Young, community leader, educator, and founder of the Wake Forest Normal and Industrial School for Negroes (1905–57), was born in northern Wake County, the eldest of ten children of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Gatewood, Willard B., Jr. James Hunter Young, politician, editor, businessman, and racial spokesman, was born near Henderson. His mother was enslaved by Captain Demetrius Ellis Young, and his father was "a prominent white man [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)