history
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In a Scene of Daily Life in 19th-Century Philly, a Black Oyster Vendor Takes Center Stage
This image is part of a weekly series that The Root is presenting in conjunction with the Image of the Black Archive & Library at Harvard University’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research. In this modestly sized scene, the artist has captured the effect of a fleeting, mundane incident with a convincing effect…
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George McJunkin: How a Black Man’s Archaeological Discovery Changed History
Who was the first black man to make an archaeological discovery? In 1900, 1,610 African Americans lived in New Mexico, many of them former slaves drawn to the wide-open spaces that promised self-determination and a respite from the early days of Jim Crow post-Reconstruction. We can surmise that the cowboy George McJunkin, like so many…
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Is a University Founder Linked to My Enslaved Ancestor?
For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to know more about my ancestors. All I know is that my great-grandfather Alex McMillan was born a slave in 1860 and came from Robeson County, N.C. While this is vague, it is precious to me to even know that tidbit of my family history.…
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Before Dyson and West: Remembering Black Luminaries’ ‘Rap Battles’
So you think the Michael Eric Dyson article on Cornel West in the New Republic is a tough one? As well as his tell-all interview with The Root? If so, you must not remember the political cartoon from Muhammad Speaks (the newspaper Malcolm X founded in his basement), which was published during the time Malcolm X…
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Who Was the 1st Black Prima Ballerina at the Met?
Who was the first black prima ballerina at the Met? “It is opening night at the Metropolitan Opera—the gala performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s Aida. It is the first time in the history of the venerable opera house that it has a black artist on its roster. Let me tell you, my friend, I am just…
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The Renaissance Tapestry That Tells an African Tale and Doesn’t Exploit Slavery
This image is part of a weekly series that The Root is presenting in conjunction with the Image of the Black Archive & Library at Harvard University’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research. Woven into the threads of a Renaissance tapestry, early Portuguese explorers’ exotic journey across the Indian Ocean depicted a world…
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My Ancestor Died in the Leflore County Massacre
I have learned that my great-grandfather Peyton Locke (1840-1889) and his eldest son, Ben Locke, were both killed in Mississippi in the Leflore County Massacre. The September 1889 massacre, in which dozens of black people were killed for organizing a Colored Farmers Alliance, was not a part of my family lore. In fact, I only…
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Who Was the 1st Black Woman to Play Professional Baseball?
Who was the first black woman to play professional baseball? When Jackie Robinson stepped onto Ebbets Field on April 15, 1947, the Brooklyn Dodgers’ first baseman broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier. Integration of the all-white MLB was seen by many as a huge step forward not just for sport, but for the nascent civil…
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Will These Runaways Escape Through the Vast Swamp of Slavery?
This image is part of a weekly series that The Root is presenting in conjunction with the Image of the Black Archive & Library at Harvard University’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research. As if playing out a savage drama on a vast stage, a slave family makes a desperate dash for freedom.…
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Were My Ancestors British Soldiers in Jamaica?
I am British-born to Jamaican parents and now residing in Miami. I have been working on my family tree for the last couple of years and have hit several brick walls. My mother’s paternal grandfather, David Emmanuel Molloy, was baptized in Newcastle (British military camp), St. Andrew, Jamaica, in 1885, according to the Catholic records.…