Black History

Madam C.J. Walker, born Sarah Breedlove, created specialized hair products for African-American hair and was one of the first American women to become a self-made millionaire. Who Was Madam C.J. Walker? Madam C.J. Walker was […]

African-American leader and prominent figure in the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X articulated concepts of race pride and black nationalism in the 1950s and ’60s.   Who Was Malcolm X and What Did He Do? […]

  Thurgood Marshall was an American lawyer, serving as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from October 1967 until October 1991. Marshall was the Court’s 96th justice and its first African-American […]

  Majorie Joyner invented the permanent wave machine. This device, patented in 1928, curled or “permed” women’s hair for a relatively lengthy period of time. Invented a permanent wave machine that added curl to straight […]

  Emmett Chappelle is the recipient of 14 U.S. patents and was recently recognized as one of the 100 most distinguished African American scientists and engineers of the 20th Century. He started with NASA in […]

George Carruthers, an Ohio scientist, has gained international recognition for his work on ultraviolet observations of the earth’s upper atmosphere and of astronomical phenomena. Ultraviolet light is the electromagnetic radiation between visible light and x-rays. […]

Dr. Percy Harris was Linn County’s first African American Medical Examiner. In 1977, he was the second African American named to the State Board of Regents.

  Archie Alexander was the first African American to graduate from the University of Iowa School of Engineering. When he could not find work as an engineer, he started his own construction firm in Des […]