On this day, scientists publicly announced findings supporting the theory of Mitochondrial Eve, a woman who lived in Africa around 150,000 to 200,000... Continue →
On January 16, 1941, Dr. Charles Richard Drew, an African American physician and medical researcher, helped establish one of the first large-scale... Continue →
Jewel Plummer Cobb, a pioneering cancer research biologist and the first African American woman to serve as president in the California State... Continue →
Daniel Hale Williams, the pioneering African American surgeon who performed one of the first successful open-heart surgeries in the United States, is... Continue →
On January 22, 1949, Dr. James Gladden became the first African American to be certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery. His... Continue →
On this day in 1891, Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, one of the first African American surgeons in the United States, founded Provident Hospital in... Continue →
On February 2, 1915, biologist Ernest E. Just was awarded the first NAACP Spingarn Medal for his groundbreaking research in cell division and... Continue →
On February 12, 1939, Augustus Nathaniel Lushington passed away. He was the first African American to earn a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.),... Continue →
On this day, a health study began in Tuskegee, Alabama, where over 400 African American men were part of a project to learn more about syphilis, a... Continue →
Dr. William Edward Burghardt Du Bois, a pioneering educator, sociologist, and civil rights advocate, was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Du... Continue →
On this day, Rebecca Lee (later Crumpler) graduated from the New England Female Medical College, becoming the first African American woman in the... Continue →
On this day, the United States Post Office issued a commemorative stamp honoring Dr. Percy Lavon Julian (1899–1975), a pioneering African American... Continue →
Dr. Charles R. Drew, a groundbreaking African American surgeon and medical researcher, died at age 45 in an automobile accident near Burlington,... Continue →
On April 18, 1976, Dr. Percy Lavon Julian passed away at age 76, leaving behind a remarkable scientific legacy. A pioneering African American... Continue →
On April 24, 1884, a group of African American physicians gathered in Atlanta, Georgia, to organize what would become the National Medical... Continue →
On May 4, 1891, Dr. Daniel Hale Williams founded Provident Hospital and Training School in Chicago, Illinois—the first interracial hospital in the... Continue →
On May 4, 1910, Booker T. Washington officially launched National Negro Health Week. Alarmed by the devastating impact of preventable diseases within... Continue →
On May 5, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Dr. Regina Benjamin to serve as U.S. Surgeon General. A Black woman from rural Alabama, Benjamin had... Continue →
On May 6, 1812, Martin Robison Delany was born free in Charles Town, Virginia (now West Virginia). A visionary intellectual, physician, and one of... Continue →
John Stewart Rock, one of the first African Americans to be admitted to the bar of the U.S. Supreme Court, died on May 6, 1872. Born free in New... Continue →
On May 7, 1885, Mary Eliza Mahoney, the first African American professionally trained nurse in the U.S., helped establish what would become the... Continue →
On May 8, 1871, Robert Tanner Freeman graduated from Harvard Dental School, becoming the first African American to earn a dental degree in the United... Continue →
On May 9, 1750, The South Carolina Gazette reported that an enslaved African man named Caesar, known for his expertise in herbal medicine, was... Continue →
By May 9, 1952, researchers had begun widely using cells from Henrietta Lacks—taken without her consent in 1951—to develop a vaccine for polio.... Continue →
On May 9, 1960, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Enovid, the first birth control pill. While often discussed in the context of broader... Continue →
Dr. Charles R. Drew, a medical pioneer who revolutionized blood storage and transfusion, died on May 10, 1950, in a car accident at the age of 45.... Continue →
On May 24, 1954, Dr. Peter Murray Marshall was installed as president of the New York County Medical Society, becoming the first African American to... Continue →
On this day in 1952, Dr. Harold D. West is named President of Meharry Medical College
On this date in 2001, Robert Tools became the first person to receive the AbioCor, a self-contained artificial heart, at Jewish Hospital in... Continue →
On this date in 1904, Dr. Charles Drew, born in Washington, D.C., made groundbreaking contributions to the field of medicine. He attended McGill... Continue →
On this date in 1943, Faye Wattleton was born. She is a notable activist, nurse, and the first African American president of Planned Parenthood.... Continue →
On this date in 1893, Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, a pioneering African American surgeon, performed the first successful open-heart surgeries. James... Continue →
On July 19, 1913, the Tri-State Dental Association was formed as a professional organization for African American dentists in the U.S. It served as... Continue →
Louis Tompkins Wright, born on July 23, 1924, was a prominent physician and one of the first African American physicians to make significant... Continue →
Kenneth Bancroft Clark was born on July 24, 1914, and he went on to become a pioneering African American psychologist. Clark is best known for his... Continue →
On July 25, 1972, the U.S. government admitted to the existence of the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, a medical study that began in 1932. In this... Continue →
On August 1, 1993, Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee made history by becoming the first Black woman to serve as the dean of a U.S. medical school when she assumed... Continue →
On August 1, 1879, Mary Eliza Mahoney became the first African American woman to graduate from a nursing program in the United States. She completed... Continue →
On August 1, 1869, Augustus Nathaniel Lushington made history as the first African American to earn a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.) degree.... Continue →
On August 2, 1966, the Charles R. Drew Postgraduate Medical School was chartered in Los Angeles. It was later renamed Charles R. Drew University of... Continue →
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, a pioneering African American surgeon, passed away on August 4, 1931. He is best known for performing one of the first... Continue →
On August 11, 1949, Peter Marray Marshall of New York was appointed to the American Medical Association's (AMA) House of Delegates. The AMA's House... Continue →
On August 13, 1881, Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia, established the first African American nursing school. This was a significant moment in... Continue →
Rebecca J. Cole was an important figure in American history, making significant strides as one of the first African American women to become a... Continue →
Dr. Herman Branson was an American physicist and chemist, born on August 14, 1914. He made significant contributions to the fields of molecular... Continue →
Yes, August 14, 1883, marks the birth of Ernest E. Just, an influential biologist known for his groundbreaking work in cell biology, particularly in... Continue →
Robert Tools made a groundbreaking contribution by being the first person to have a self-contained artificial heart implanted. His surgery, which... Continue →
On August 23, 1908, Martha Minerva Franklin led 52 African American nurses in founding the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses (NACGN) in... Continue →
E. Franklin Frazier, born on August 29, 1894, was a renowned African American sociologist. He is best known for his work on the sociology of race,... Continue →
On September 1, 1867, Robert Tanner Freeman became the first Black person to graduate from Harvard Dental School. He was a trailblazer in dental... Continue →
On this date in 1895, National Medical Association founded in Atlanta.
ON this date in 1953, Clarence S. Green becomes the first African-American certified in neurological surgery.
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, a pioneering African American surgeon, became the first Black physician elected as a charter member of the American College... Continue →
Robert Tools, the first human to receive the AbioCor fully self-contained artificial heart, died at age 59 due to multiple organ failure after... Continue →
On this day, John S. Rock—a lawyer, physician, and abolitionist—passed away. In 1865, he made history as the first African American admitted to... Continue →
Dr. Theodore K. Lawless was born on December 6, 1892, in Thibodaux, Louisiana. He became a renowned dermatologist, medical researcher, and... Continue →
William Augustus Hinton, a pioneering African American bacteriologist and pathologist, was born on this day. He is best known for developing the... Continue →
Mabel Keaton Staupers received the NAACP's prestigious Spingarn Medal for her pioneering leadership in nursing and her tireless advocacy for racial... Continue →
Henry McKee Minton was born on this day in Columbia, South Carolina. A pioneering African American physician and pharmacist, Minton co-founded Sigma... Continue →
On this day in 1941, Dr. Charles Richard Drew, a trailblazing African American physician and researcher, established a pioneering blood bank in New... Continue →
Dr. Miles V. Lynk, a pioneering African American physician, published The Medical and Surgical Observer, the first Black medical journal in the... Continue →
© 2025 KnowThyHistory.com. Know Thy History