Black History Trivia Flashcards
What national organization was founded on President
Lincoln’s Birthday?
National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People (or
NAACP)
In 1905 the first black symphony was founded. What
was it called?
Philadelphia Concert Orchestra
The novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin was published in what
year?
1852
In what state is Tuskegee Institute located?
Alabama
Who was the first Black American inducted into the Pro
Football Hall of Fame?
Emlen Tunnell
In 1986, Dexter Gordan was nominated for an Oscar for
his performance in what film?
Round Midnight
During the first two-thirds of the seventeenth century
what two countries dominated the African slave trade?
Holland and Portugal
In 1994, which president named Eddie Jordan, Jr. as the
first African American to hold the post of U.S. Attorney
in the state of Louisiana?
President Bill Clinton
Frank Robinson became the first Black American
manager in major league baseball for what team?
Cleveland Indians
What company has a successful series of television
commercials that started in 1974 and features Bill
Cosby?
Jell-O
He worked for the NAACP and became the first field
secretary in Jackson, Mississippi. He was shot in June
1963. Who was he?
Medgar Evers
Performing in evening attire, these stars of The Creole
Show were the first African American couple to perform
on Broadway. Name them.
Charles Johnson and Dora Dean
How many Gold Medals did track and field athlete Carl
Lewis win in his career?
Nine
In 1910 about fifty percent of black labor force was
employed in what industry?
Agriculture
Who championed the principle of industrial/vocational
education for black people?
Booker T. Washington
What do many historians call the period immediately
following the Civil War?
Reconstruction
Which rapper known for such albums as Black on Both
Sides began rhyming at age nine in his hometown of
Brooklyn, New York?
Mos Def
In 1954 Dorothy Dandridge was the first black actress to
receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress
in what film?
Carmen Jones
What Black American actress had roles in the movies A
Raisin in the Sun and Blues for Mr. Charlie ?
Diana Sands
Evelyn King received gold records for her songs Shame
(1978) and I Don’t Know If It’s Right (1979). What was
this artist’s nickname?
Champagne
F. E. Whitney assisted with the development and
construction of the first subdivision developed by
African Americans in Hopkinsville. Name it.
the Gladys-Gail Village
What Alex Haley novel was made into a television miniseries in 1977 and 1979
Roots
What was the title of tennis great Arthur Ashe’s threevolume history penned in 1988?
A Hard Road to Glory
With 20 years’ service, who was the longest serving
African American member of the Kentucky General
Assembly?
Senator Georgia Powers
Which Union general is credited with burning Atlanta
during the Civil War?
General William T. Sherman
Who was the founder of the National Negro Finance
Corporation?
Robert Moton
A painting of what African American performer was
unveiled in 1902 at the coronation of King Edward VII
and exhibited at the Paris Expo?
Dora Dean
What household item was invented by Sarah Boone?
Ironing board
Mary Eliza Merritt, the first African American nurse
licensed in Kentucky, was awarded a certificate of merit
from what U.S. President?
President Woodrow Wilson
The first black elected to the Kentucky legislature,
Charles W. Anderson was also appointed alternate
delegate to what body?
United Nations
Who developed an advance method for determining the
metal content of ore?
Charles Spurgeon Fletcher
What famous scientist and biologist said, “God gave
them to me, why should I claim to own them” with
regard to his discoveries and inventions?
George Washington Carver
What song has become Count Basie’s theme song and
was later recorded by many different music groups?
One O’clock Jump
What Black American physician was referred to as “The
principal historian of the Negro in medicine” in 1970?
W. Montague Cobb
From what university did James Meredith graduate? Add
significance
University of Mississippi
Elizabeth Catlett Mora is a graphic artist and printmaker.
For what other type of work is she best known?
Sculpture
Whose series Political Satires were published in the
Kentucky New Era from 1908-1912?
Ephraim Poston
He was a minister of Abyssinian Baptist Church, a
congressman, and a civil rights advocate. Who was he?
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr
Lena Horne began her career as a singer and dancer in
what New York entertainment club?
The Cotton Club
After an early childhood spent in Barbabos and a
successful career as a teacher, she was elected to the
New York Assembly. She then became the first black
woman to serve in the U.S. Congress where she worked
for 13 years. Name her.
Shirley Chisholm
Who invented the golf tee?
G.F. Grant
Who is explorer Matthew Henson buried next to?
Admiral Robert E. Peary
What native American tribe named James Beckwourth a
chief and called him “Bull’s Robe”?
The Crow
In what year did Dehart Hubbard become the first Black
American to win the Olympic gold medal in the broad
jump?
1924
What Black American was once ranked as the number
one tennis player in the world?
Arthur Ashe
Who was the first Black American mayor of Detroit?
Coleman Young
What was Joe Louis’s overall professional boxing
record?
68 wins, 3 loses
Who is Mary Ann Shadd Cary?
Black Newspaperwoman
Elected in Washington County in 1973, who became the
first African American jailer in Kentucky?
George Melwood Hocker
Who is called “The Queen of the Blues”?
Dinah Washington
In 1890, Lewis Latimer became the chief draftsman of
what company?
Edison Electric Light Company
Who was the first Black American to receive a degree
from Harvard University?
Richard Greener
Who founded the Southern Leadership Conference?
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
What Hopkinsville native penned the children’s books
Happy to be Nappy and Be Boy Buzz ?
bell hooks
Who was the first Black American professionally trained
as a registered nurse in the United States?
Mary Mahoney
This Grammy award winning gospel singer, arranger,
and composer who worked with many groups and large
choirs in the 1950s and 1960s is credited with being the
most significant driving force behind the creation of the
contemporary gospel sound. Name him.
James Cleveland
Who was the first Black American to play in the
National Hockey League?
Val James
He was interested in plants at an early age and was an
agriculturist who developed peanut products. Who was
he?
George Washington Carver
Who was the first Black American woman to be elected
to the 20th Century Club of Boston?
Charlotte Hawkins Brown
Who was the first Black American pitcher to win the Cy
Young award in the American League?
Vida Blue
Who was the first Black American woman to be elected
to the 20th Century Club of Boston?
Charles Harrison Mason
In the 1920s the Lindy Hop was made famous at this
Harlem dance venue.
The Savoy Ballroom
What state’s government passed a law that formally
recognized slavery as an institution in 1661?
Virginia’s
In what three years was Harlem hit with race riots?
1935, 1943 and 1964
What major tennis tournament did Althea Gibson win in
1956?
French Championship open?
At the age of 24, this golfer won the 82nd PGA
Championship, beating Bob May in a three-hole playoff
at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, on
August 20, 2000. Name him.
Tiger Woods
Who was the female lead singer of 5th Dimension, a
popular group of the 1960s and 1970s?
Marilyn McCoo
Who received the NAACP Key of Life Award in 1988?
Dorothy Height
Who was the first African American cave explorer and
the first guide and explorer of Mammoth Cave; which is
the world’s longest cave system?
Stephen Bishop
Jorno Kenyatta was a leader of what country?
Kenya
In what year did all 50 states recognize Martin Luther
King Day?
1993
What Motown song writer/producer trio was inducted
into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1988 and the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990?
Holland, Dozier, & Holland
What engineer from New Orleans patented the sugar
refinery?
Norbert Rillieux
W.A. Martin patented what security device?
Door lock
Dorothy Height was the president of what organization?
National Council of Negro Women
Who was the first American born Black man to be
ordained a Roman Catholic priest?
Father Tolton
What is the name of B.B. King’s guitar?
“Lucille”
This director, screenwriter and actor was born in Atlanta
but relocated to Brooklyn, where he later established a
film company. Whether working with a low-budget and
unknown actors or Hollywood heavyweights, his films
continue to be controversial and push racial boundaries.
Name him.
Spike Lee
The first known slave narrative was A Narrative of the
Uncommon Sufferings, and Surprizing Deliverance of
Briton Hammon, a Negro Man . In what year was it
published?
1760
The Mighty Clouds of Joy became the first gospel
quartet to use electric keyboards, electric bass, and
drums. They were nicknamed what because they
modeled their singing and dance steps on the style of
contemporary soul music groups?
the Temptations of gospel
Appointed by Governor Steve Beshear in 2007, who was
the first African American to be appointed Secretary of
the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet?
J. Michael Brown
Which black soldiers were with General George
Washington when he crossed the Delaware River on
Christmas Day in 1776?
Oliver Cromwell and Prince
Whipple
Who was the founder and president of the first Black
American national labor union in 1869?
Isaac Myers
Who became the University of Tennessee’s all-time
leading scorer in 1994?
Allan W. Houston, Jr
What major league baseball hitter won the most batting
titles during the 1971 season?
Rod Carew
Who was known as the “Dean of the Negro
Newspapermen”?
T. Thomas Fortune
In the late nineteenth century there was a system of laws
that enforced racial discrimination in the United States.
What was it called?
Jim Crow
Who was the first Black American woman to be
recognized as an award-winning composer?
Florence Price
In 1854, to what country did Norbert Rillieux go when
he could no longer tolerate the discrimination and
prejudice he experienced in America?
France
In 1983 who became the first black mayor of Chicago,
Illinois?
Harold Washington
By the time Thurgood Marshall reached the age of 40,
what nickname had he earned from the press?
Mr. Civil Rights
Which one of composer/pianist Anthony Davis’ operas
premiered in Philadelphia in 1985 and was performed by
the New York City Opera in 1986?
X: The Life and Times of Malcolm
X
Who was the first Black American to appear on the
cover of Vogue magazine?
Beverly Johnson
Dr. Ronald McNair was a black astronaut who made his
first space shuttle mission in 1984. Unfortunately, his
last space mission was never completed. What happened
to him and his crew members on January 28, 1986?
The space shuttle that Dr. McNair
and six other astronauts were in
exploded after takeoff in Cape
Canaveral, Florida.
Born in Benham, KY, who, at the age of 25, became
head coach at the University of San Diego and the
youngest college coach in the U.S. at that time?
Bernard T. “Bernie” Bickerstaff, Sr
Who was a sidekick on The Jack Benny Show?
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson
President Richard Nixon presented the Presidential
Medal of Freedom in 1969 to what great musician?
Duke Ellington
In 1927, what Black American scientist and inventor
received a patent for his process of producing paint?
George Washington Carver
A pediatrician and founder of what medical facility,
Grace Marilynn James was the first African American
woman member of the Jefferson County Medical
Society and the first African American woman admitted
to the University of Louisville School of Medicine?
the West Louisville Medical Center
Who was regarded as a master guitar player and
developed a program for learning the guitar?
Justin Howard
In what year did Althea Gibson become the first Black
American to win a major tennis title?
1957
Mary McLeod Bethune practiced the philosophy of what
prominent educator?
Booker T. Washington
What Kentucky college was integrated with black and
white students in 1858, but discontinued the biracial mix
in 1904?
Berea College
President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed what attorney as
a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court?
Thurgood Marshall
In what year did the U.S. Navy commission its first
group of black officers?
1944
Hiram Revels, the first black elected to serve in the U.S.
Senate in 1870, was selected to fill in the unexpired term
of whom?
Jefferson Davis
President Jimmy Carter honored the 761st Tank
Battalion, an all black unit, for fighting in what war?
World War II
He became the first African American since 1897 to
represent South Carolina in the U.S. Congress. Name
him.
James Clyburn
Who was the first African American baseball player at
the University of Kentucky?
Derek Bryant
Henry Bibb was a fugitive slave narrator and journalist.
He emigrated to what country?
Canada
Claude McKay and James Weldon Johnson were writers
of the Harlem Renaissance period. Which one of them
was born in Jamaica?
Claude McKay
Ralph Ellison turned to writing after his career in what
field was not successful?
Music
Who was the first African American to be awarded the
Navy Cross, the third highest honor awarded by the US
Navy at the time, for bravery shown during the attack on
Pearl Harbor?
Doris Miller
This person was born in Christian County, Kentucky, in
1874, was the son of former slaves, saved enough money
to attend school, became a school teacher, founded three
newspapers, was a painter, a poet, and a lawyer. Who
was he?
Claybron W. Merriweather
Who started the Gold Medal Awards, later named for
him, which recognized the highest or noblest
achievement by a Black American?
Joel E. Springarn
What woman, born in Hancock County, KY, became the
first African American switchboard operator at the U.S.
Post Office in South Bend, Indiana in 1959?
Julia E. Jackson Aikens
What successful businessman was also the founder of
Negro Free Masonry?
Prince Hall
Born in Kentucky, Carl Maxie Brashear, the first
African American Navy master diver, lost the lower part
of his left leg in an accident on what naval ship?
the USS Hoist
What will be the longest, continuously running, first-run
syndicated television program until at least 2016?
Soul Train
Ernest J. Gaines is a short story writer who wrote a 1971
historical novel turned television movie whose main
character was a 110 year-old woman who narrated her
personal experiences. Name the novel.
The Autobiography of Miss Jane
Pittman
What musical genre emerged from three heavily
populated black isolated areas: the Mississippi Delta, the
Piedmont, and East Texas?
The blues
In 1982, Louis Gossett, Jr. won an Academy Award for
Best Supporting Actor for his work in what film?
An Officer and A Gentleman
Generating revenues over $88 billion dollars annually,
how many black-owned businesses were there in the
United States in 2002?
nearly 1.2 million
Five years after acting in the television mini-series
Roots, he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting
Actor in An Officer and A Gentleman. What is his
name?
Louis Gossett, Jr.
The “PUSH” in Operation PUSH, founded by Rev. Jesse
Jackson, stand for what?
People United to Serve Humanity
Music historians refer to what type of music as the first
Black American music?
Spiritual
Who became a justice of the Supreme Court of
Pennsylvania in 1972?
Robert N.C. Nix, Jr
Published in 1907, what was the title of the first of six
Claybron Merriweather books?
Light and Shadows
She was a forward who scored 47 points in the final
game of the National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA) tournament in 1993. She led Texas Tech to the
national championship. Who is she?
Sheryl Swoopes
What movement did Marcus Garvey believe to be the
answer to the problems of Black Americans?
Back to Africa
General Benjamin Butler of the Union Army refused to
return runaway slaves to their masters. What term did he
use to describe them?
“Contraband of war”
Who helped form the “American Moral Reform
Society”, which helped Blacks acquire farms and aided
runaway slaves in their escape to Canada?
William S. Whipper
What African American served as the U.S. Ambassador
to the United Nations from 2013-2017?
Susan Rice
What Black American invented the railway telegraph?
Granville T. Woods
What was the name of the character played by Bill
Cosby in The Cosby Show?
Dr. Cliff Huxtable
What was the first African American periodical
newspaper published in the United States?
Freedom’s Journal
What famous singer played guitar for Little Richard
before starting his solo career?
Jimi Hendrix
What devoted follower of Elijah Muhammad left the
Nation of Islam in 1964 to form a militant group called
Muslim Mosque?
Malcolm X
In 1866, what library was the first desegregated library
in Kentucky and the South?
Berea College Library
Who wrote “Their Eyes Were Watching God” ?
Zora Neale Hurston
In 1991, what became the first black-controlled
company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange?
BET
Jackie Robinson appeared on what value US postage
stamp?
15 cent
Who was the first Black American appointed to the U.S.
Supreme Court?
Thurgood Marshall
Born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, what guitar and
harmonica player worked with “Sonny Boy” Williamson
and Muddy Waters?
John Brim
NBA superstar Michael Jordan played college basketball
at what university?
University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill
Name the founder of the quarterly publication Journal
of Negro History and Negro History Week (now Black
History Month) who also established the first historical
society devoted exclusively to research on the black
American.
Carter G. Woodson
In what year did the United States abolish slavery?
1865
What actor and stand up comedian warned others of the
dangers of drug abuse after his own near death
experience?
Richard Pryor
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams served as professor of clinical
surgery at what medical facility?
Meharry Medical College in
Nashville, Tennessee
How many books did Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. write?
5
Ed Bradley was a member of what news team?
60 Minutes
Marcus Garvey, founder of the Universal Negro
Improvement Association (UNIA), founded a monthly
magazine entitled Black Man in what country?
Jamaica
Jackie Robinson excelled in four sports at what
university?
University of California at Los
Angeles (UCLA)
Name the three journalist sons of educator, poet, and
author Ephraim Poston?
Ulysses, Robert, and Ted Poston
Who is a pioneer in tooth transplantation research and a
graduate of Howard University?
Dr. Harold Fleming
Serving five four-year terms, who was the first African
American and first woman in the Kentucky Senate?
Georgia D. Powers
Carl Stokes and Richard Hatcher were elected as
mayor’s of US cities on what date?
November 7, 1967
Cheyney State, the oldest Black American college, was
founded in what year?
1837
In what year did Joe Frazier defend his boxing title
against Muhammad Ali?
1971
What is the name of the California Hotel designed by
Paul Williams?
Beverly Wilshire Hotel
Mayor
As leader of the boycott organization in Montgomery,
Alabama, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his
initial civil rights address at what church in Montgomery
in 1955?
Holt Street Baptist Church
What was Jackie Robinson’s lifetime batting average?
0.311
Born a slave in Montgomery County, KY, the original
“Aunt Jemima,” received a lifetime contract and traveled
all over the country promoting the product until her
death in 1923. Name her.
Nancy Green
What popular magazine did John H. Johnson begin in
1945?
Ebony
Who was the first Black American to win the Mr.
American title?
Chris Dickerson
Carl J. Murphy served on the Board of Directors of the
NAACP for how many years?
36
In 1982 what Kentucky State University museum
became a major repository for the collection of artifacts,
books, and records related to its history of educating
black citizens?
Center of Excellence for the Study
of Kentucky African Americans
(CESKAA)
In 1949, what religious movement did Malcolm X join?
Nation of Islam
What early 20th century artist was the first blues singer
to have a recording contract?
Mamie Smith
What president vetoed the Freedmen’s Bureau bill and
the Civil Rights bill?
President Andrew Johnson
Who is called the “queen of hip-hop soul?”
Mary J. Blige
Who did Sugar Ray Robinson beat in the 1951
middleweight championship?
Jake Lamotta
Barney Ford, a former slave, gained his freedom by
doing what?
Escaping to Chicago via the
Underground Railroad
The New Orleans Tribune, the first black daily
newspaper was founded in New Orleans in what year?
1864
Having studied eight languages, this pastor, author, and
member of the Kentucky Board of Education served in
the U.S. Army as a multilingual interpreter and taught
foreign languages?
Dr. Clyde B. Akins, Sr.
Who invented the incubator?
Granville T. Woods
Name the group who performed the 1970s hit Smoke
Gets in Your Eyes and was inducted into the Vocal
Group Hall of Fame and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The Platters
What country secured a monopoly over the slave trade to
the New World in 1713?
England
Who said, “Every race and every nation should be
judged by the best it has been able to produce, not by the
worst?”
James Weldon Johnson
Nashville’s first ordained African American minister,
Nelson Merry founded what church of more than 2,000
members, the largest church in Tennessee during his
time?
The First Colored Baptist Church
What was Sojourner Truth’s name when she was a slave
in Ulster County, New York?
Isabella Baumfree
What was the original reason for establishing the Black
Panther Party?
Self Defense
Who became the first woman to chair the NAACP?
Myrlie Evers-Williams
In 1963 Sidney Poitier became the first Black American
to win the Best Actor Oscar for his role in what film?
Lillie’s of the Field
Who was the Confederate president during the Civil
War?
Jefferson Davis
Chosen as the first Black manager in baseball’s
American League, who managed the Cleveland Indians
beginning in 1974?
Frank Robinson
What is MC Hammer’s real name?
Stanley Kirk Burrell
Sarah Breedlove Walker developed special hair care
products for black women. Among them was the hot
comb. By what name she was known?
Madam C.J. Walker
In what year did Jackie Robinson become the first Black
American to win the MVP award in baseball?
1949
What was the name of the crude sugar refining process
Norbert Rillieux’s invention made obsolete?
Jamaica Train
What actor played Charlie “Bird” Parker in the 1988
movie Bird
Forest Whitaker
Marlin Briscoe was the first Black starting quarterback
for what football team?
Denver Broncos
What Hopkinsville natives and brothers owned and
edited The Detroit Contender ?
Ulysses and Robert Poston
Who became the first Black American awarded a
Rhodes Scholarship in 1940?
Alain Leroy Locke
What basketball star center perfected a shot known as
the “skyhook”?
Kareem Abdul-Jabar
George Washington Carver’s mule-drawn wagon often
went to area farmers to teach them about improving crop
yields. What was this wagon called?
Moveable School
Willie Mays received a bonus of how much money when
he signed with the New York Giants?
$5,000
James Earl Jones and Cicely Tyson were featured in
what dramatic series from 1963 to 1964?
East Side, West Side
Who invented a revolving brush used to clean streets?
Charles Brooks
Entited Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl , whose 1861
work was the first to be authored by a black female
former slave?
Harriet A. Jacobs’
Who founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity?
Malcolm X
Jesse Stahl competed and was discriminated against in
an Oregon rodeo in the early 1900s. What did he do
when the judges did not award him first prize which he
thought he deserved?
Rode his next horse in protest by
facing backward
What militant group embodied the term “Black Power”?
Black Panther Party
St. Elmo Brady was the first African American admitted
to what chemistry honor society?
Phi Lambda Upsilon
Who was the first Black American heavyweight boxing
champion?
Jack Johnson
What Hopkinsville native was elected to the Indiana
House of Representatives in 1956 and later became a
journalist for the Indianapolis Recorder and Hoosier
Herald ?
Opal L. Tandy
Robert Johnson, Sam Cooke, and Ray Charles were
inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in what
year?
1986
Under what name did poet Amiri Baraka publish some
of his books?
Le Roi Jones
Bill Pickett was a rodeo star who chased down a steer on
horseback, jumped off, and wrestled the animal to the
ground. He invented this style of steer wrestling. By
what name was it known?
Bulldogging
Who wrote the Pulitzer Prize winning book of poetry
Annie Allen in 1949?
Gwendolyn Brooks
Born in 1968, who directed such films as Boyz N the
Hood, Poetic Justice, Higher Learning, Baby Boy, and 2
Fast 2 Furious?
John Singleton
Who was the first Black American four star general in
US military history?
Daniel James, Jr
What was Louis Armstrong’s nickname?
Satchmo
Charles W. Anderson is credited with a number of early
Civil Rights measures including what Act which
provided funding for African Americans to seek higher
education out of state because Kentucky enforced higher
education segregation laws?
Anderson-Mayer State Aid Ac
What awards did the French government present to the
black soldiers and their battalions for bravery and
courage?
the Croix de Guerre, the
distinguished French decoration, or
Legions of Merit
In 1991 there were eight inductees to the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame including a husband and wife duo who
sang “Proud Mary” in 1969. Who are they?
Ike and Tina Turner
What was the profession of Garland H. Brooks,
Hopkinsville native and Howard University graduate?
Pharmacist
Before A. Philip Randolph established a successful labor
union for black train porters, approximately how much
money were these workers paid per day?
$2.00
Detroit was struck with race riots in what two years?
1943 and 1967
What test was given to potential Black voters to
determine whether they understood the U.S. Constitution
and could read?
Literacy test
Maynard Jackson became the first Black American
mayor of what city?
Atlanta
Who developed the first airborne radar system that was
used for locating downed aircraft?
Ozzie Williams
Established in 1945, this publisher of Ebony and Jet
magazines is the world’s largest black-owned publishing
company. Name it.
Johnson Publishing Company
Who founded the National Negro Business League in
1900?
Booker T. Washington
What actor appeared in the play Emperor Jones in 1925?
Paul Robeson
What was the name of the first magazine published by
John H. Johnson?
Negro Digest
What explorer departed fro a famous expedition aboard
the ship “Roosevelt” on July 6, 1908?
Matthew Henson
Who was the first Black American to fly with the Blue
Angels?
Donnie Cochran
What lawsuit, the third filed by the NAACP, was filed in
Federal District Court in 1940 on behalf of an African
American teacher who received 15% less salary than
white teachers?
Abbington v Board of Education of
Louisville
Who played the character of “Denise” in the Cosby
Show?
Lisa Bonet
Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., a member of the Tuskegee
Airmen, was the first black general of the Air Force. He
was instrumental in getting what president to end
segregation in the armed forces?
President Harry S. Truman
Who was the first Black American woman elected to a
state legislature?
Crystal Bird Fauset
Fisk University was established in Nashville, Tennessee
as a liberal arts institution in what year?
1865
Billie Holiday’s life was the subject of what famous
film?
Lady Sings the Blues
Who founded an economic program called “The People
United to Save Humanity”?
Jesse Jackson
Dionne Warwick had numerous hits on the Billboard
music charts. Say A Little Prayer and I’ll Never Love
This Way Again went gold. She recorded Then Came
You with a popular male group and it went gold as well.
What is the name of the group?
The Spinners
Who is the author of Before the Mayflower ?
Leone Bennett, Jr.
Who was the first Black American president of the
National Baseball League?
Bill White
Tiger Woods became the youngest top-ranked golfer and
won over 20 championships in 2007. What is his first
name?
Eldrick
Julian Abele was involved in the design of what
museum?
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Who invented a method for growing oxide?
Corland Dugger
Derek Bryant, the first African American baseball player
at the University of Kentucky, was drafted by what
professional team?
Oakland Athletics
Who wrote the poem “A Negro Love Song”?
Paul Laurence Dunbar
The operas A Guest of Honor and Treemonisha were
written by whom in the early 1900s?
Scott Joplin
His style of funk music and dance led the way for Disco
and Hip Hop. Known as the “hardest working man in
show business” and “the godfather of soul,” who is he?
James Brown
George Shirley was a tenor and member of what opera
company?
the Metropolitan Opera
Who won the French Legion of Honor award for her
work in entertaining the Work War II allies?
Josephine Baker
Who was Muhammad Ali’s opponent in the famous
“Thrilla in Manila” fight?
Joe Frazier
Bill Russell became the nation’s first Black American
head coach of what professional basketball team in 1966
Boston Celtics
Name 2 of the 4 colleges that make up the Atlanta
University Center, the largest contiguous consortium of
African-Americans in higher education in the United
States.
Clark Atlanta University, Spelman
College, Morehouse College, and
Morehouse School of Medicine
For what profession is Leona Mitchell known?
Opera Singing
Who was the first African-American postmaster in
Kentucky and the second in the United States?
Laura Young
What professional basketball star returned to the NBA
after successfully combating drug addiction, and
commented, “People say you almost lost
basketball…Well, I almost lost my life”?
John Lucas
What law prohibited slavery north and west of the 36-30
parallel within the Louisiana Territory?
Missouri Compromise
Who performed the world’s first open heart surgery?
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams
Who was the first Black American to receive the Nobel
Peace Prize in 1950?
Dr. Ralph Bunche
With what professional baseball team did Ernie Banks
start and end his career?
Chicago Cubs
In 1997 who became the first African American
basketball coach at the University of Kentucky?
Orlando “Tubby” Smith
During the Civil War, Frederick Douglass served as an
adviser to what US President?
Abraham Lincoln
In what year did the first Broadway play written by a
Black American woman open in New York?
1959
Cheyney University in Pennsylvania was funded by a
will from what Philadelphia Quaker in 1832?
Richard Humphreys
What famous musician’s trademark was puffing cheeks
and a trumpet bell that pointed skyward?
Dizzy Gillespie
Who was the first Black American national security
advisor?
Colin Powell
A celebration of the freedom of African American
slaves, Kentucky Representative Reginald Meeks led the
push for the creation of what holiday in Kentucky?
Juneteenth National Freedom Day
Barbara Jordan was a member of the 1974 House
Judiciary Committee chosen to hear Watergate
testimony which led to the resignation of what US
President?
Richard M. Nixon
Born in Hopkinsville, KY, the youngest of the twelve
children, what student athlete declined football
scholarships to attend Centre College, where he majored
in chemistry and math and graduated in 1973?
Raymond M. Burse
Who became the only Black American member of the
famous “Edison Pioneers,” a group of people who had
worked with Edison before 1885?
Lewis Latimer
Well-known Jamaican reggae artist Bob Marley was
inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in what
year?
1994
What does the nickname of rapper and actor LL Cool J
stand for?
Ladies Love Cool James
What two actress played the roll of Beulah, a
housekeeper in the 1950s television spin-off of the radio
show Fibber McGee and Molly?
Ethel Waters and Louise Beavers
What was the amount of the first royalty check for Berry
Gordy, Jr., founder of Motown Records?
$3.40
In what year did the first Black Americans Charles
Cooper, Early Lloyd, and Nathaniel Clifton play in the
NBA?
1950
Robert “Bob” Johnson founded Black Entertainment
Television Cable
Network (BET) in what year?
1979
Who was the first Black American woman president of
Spelman College?
Johnetta Cole
What Black American was a vice presidential candidate
at the 1968 Democratic National Convention?
Julian Bond
The Guinness Book of World Records lists what
Michael Jackson album as the best selling album of all
times?
Thriller
What civil rights leader was co-founder of the NAACP
and the Pan-African Movement?
W.E.B Du Bois
Hyram S. Thomas was a chef who created what popular
snack?
Potato chip
Who was the first Black minister ordained in America?
Absalom Jones
Pianist Duke Ellington was a bandleader and a great
composer who played at what famous New York City
club from 1927 to 1931?
Cotton Club
On the TV series Magnum, P.I., what was Roger
Mosely’s nickname?
T.C.
Vanessa Bell appeared on what soap opera?
All My Children
In what year was the first all Black medical school
Meharry Medical College established?
1876
Daniel “Chappie” James, Jr. became the first black fourstar general in what year?
1975
What did Benjamin Banneker’s book Almanac
examine?
The sun, moon, and planets
What Black slave helped Cyrus McCormick invent his
famous reaper?
Joe Anderson
In what city is the Crispus Attucks Monument located?
Boston
In 1979, what forced Arthur Ashe to retire from
professional tennis?
Heart Attack
John H. Johnson
What Black American educator also served as an advisor
to five U.S. presidents?
Mary McLeod Bethune
Kunta Kinte was one the characters in what Alex Haley
book?
Roots
What preacher and abolitionist helped raise money for
gifts for Civil War soldiers; gave rousing, inspirational
anti-slavery speeches working with both black and white
abolitionists; and helped African-Americans relocate to
the North?
Sojourner Truth
Who really built the first model of steam engine, but was
unable to patent his work because he was a slave?
Benjamin Bradley
In what state did Nat Turner lead a slave revolt that
killed 55 white people?
Virginia
Inaugurated as the 44th president on January 20, 2009,
who became the first African American president of the
United States?
Barack Hussein Obama, II
Who was the first Black American elected to the
Baseball Hall of Fame?
Jackie Robinson
Who published the Black American medical journal in
1892?
Miles Vandahurst Lynk
Under the command of Col. Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., the
332nd destroyed 111 planes in the air and 150 on the
ground while never losing a single bomber. They were
awarded what honor for the service?
the Distinguished Flying Cross
Alfred “Sonny” Collins
What U.S. President developed a coalition of Black
advisors call the Black Cabinet?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Georgia Douglas Johnson was a poet during the Harlem
Renaissance era. She often held writers’ workshops at
her home in what city?
Washington, D.C
On January 28, 1986, what space shuttle exploded 73
seconds after lift-off, killing Dr. Ronald McNair and six
of his colleagues?
Challenger
Who was the first African American to play football for
the New York Giants?
Emlen Tunnell
What heavyweight boxing champion defended his title
against Muhammad Ali in 1971?
Joe Frazier
August Jackson created what well-known desert?
Ice Cream
What black support unit drove supplies by truck to
advancing American forces and also performed yeoman
service during the Battle of the
Bulge in 1944?
The Red Ball Express
In 1956 Althea Gibson become the first African
American woman to win a Grand Slam title in what
sport?
Tennis
In what year was a national holiday proclaimed
commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday?
1983
John Mercer Langston was the first Black American
elected to Congress from Virginia. To what office was
he elected?
US House of Representatives
In 1984, what Black American singer won eight
Grammy Awards?
Michael Jackson
Harry Belafonte became the first black to receive an
Emmy for what show in 1959?
Tonight with Belafonte
Who was the first Black American woman doctor?
Rebecca Lee
Born into slavery in Missouri, who worked his way
through school as a farm hand and a janitor to become
an agricultural scientist whose discoveries
revolutionized southern agriculture and helped the South
move away from dependence on the cotton industry?
George Washington Carver
What president initially rejected the service of Black
slaves in the Union Army during the Civil War?
President Abraham Lincoln
Donald E. Jefferson invented what mechanism used by
construction crews?
Triggered exploding wire device
When Thurgood Marshall retired from the U.S. Supreme
Court, who was appointed to fill his position?
Clarence Thomas
Which Presbyterian minister delivered a militant speech
entitled “An Address to the Slaves of the United States”
in 1843 at the National Negro Convention in Buffalo,
New York?
Henry Highland Garnet
What was the name of the movie that was based on the
life of Stephen Bantu Biko, a South African freedom
fighter?
Cry Freedom
How many trips did Harriet Tubman make to the South
to rescue Black slaves?
19
