James Meredith starts school. He is the first Black student at University of Mississippi... after 3000 federal troops

quelled riots over his admission, 1962

On October 1, 2001, President George W. Bush nominated Mattie R. Sharpless to be the next United States Ambassador to the Central African Republic. After confirmation by the U.S. Senate, Sharpless was at her post in the nation’s capital at Bangui by mid-December 2001.  Sharpless served in Bangui until June 2003.  Unlike most ambassadors who are either political appointees or career foreign service diplomats, Sharpless was a long term employee of the United States Foreign Agriculture Service, a section of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Sharpless was born in Hampstead, North Carolina on July 1, 1943 to James and Lecola Sharpless.  When Sharpless was 11, her father died. Her mother Lecola became a single parent and the sole provider for Mattie and her eight siblings.

Because of the family’s poverty, Mattie Sharpless at first believed that her own educational advancement would be difficult. With the support of family and teachers she eventually decided to pursue higher education.  Sharpless graduated from Pender County Training High School in Rocky Mount, North Carolina in 1961 and then entered North Carolina College (NCC), a historically black college in Durham, North Carolina, on a scholarship. While at NCC she became interested in pursuing a career with the Federal government.   

In 1965, Sharpless graduated from NCC with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Education. She continued to pursue graduate work at the institution part time and was there when it became North Carolina Central University in 1969.  In 1972 she graduated from North Carolina Central University with an M.A. in Business Administration and Economics.

In 1965, after obtaining her B.S. degree, Sharpless began working for the United States Foreign Agriculture Service (USFAS), the agency in the USDA that connects American farming with other areas of the world; it seeks to further trade possibilities globally so there is more foodstuff security. Sharpless served over 40 years with USFAS within the USDA, often in other nations.

The first official bargaining agent for black workers was the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. This was the first major nationwide black union founded by A. Phillip Randolph.

Some twelve thousand federal soldiers restored order on the University of Mississippi campus. James H. Meredith, escorted by federal marshals, registered at the University of Mississippi. Edwin A. Walker, former major general in the U.S. Army, was arrested and charged with inciting insurrection and seditious conspiracy. Walker, who led federal troops during the Little Rock integration crisis, had call for Volunteers to oppose federal forces in Mississippi. Witnesses said he led students in charges against federal marshals during the campus riot.

Nnamdi Azikiwe was the first President of Nigeria and wasinstrumental in founding a string of newspapers across Nigeria.

Azikiwe was born on November 16, 1904 in Zungeru which wasthen the capital of Northern Nigeria.  His father, Chukwumeka Azikiwe, was a civilservant in the British colonial government. Azikiwe began attending school in 1912 after enrolling in the ChurchMissionary Society (CMS) Niger Mission in Onitsha.  Between 1912 and 1921 Azikiwe switched mostlybetween CMS and Wesleyan Boys High School,both in Lagos,at the request of his father.  In 1921Azikiwe passed his civil servant exam and was assigned to work in the TreasuryDepartment in Nigeria.

Believing that education was his key to advancement inAfrica, Azikiwe left Lagos in 1925 to attend Storer Collegein West Virginia in the United States.  He also attended HowardUniversity for a time beforegraduating from LincolnUniversity in 1930 withhis Bachelors Degree in Political Science. By 1933 Azikiwe would also earn two Masters Degrees in Arts and Sciencefrom Lincoln Universityand the Universityof Pennsylvania.

In late 1934 Azikiwe returned to Africa, settling in Accra, Ghanawhere he became the editor of the newly founded African Morning Post.  Withthat position he began his career in the newspaper industry where he promotedAfrican nationalism and later African independence.  After returning to Nigeriain 1937 Azikiwe founded the West AfricanPilot and the Zik Group of Newspapers which by 1944 controlled five majorpublications across Nigeria. 

In 1947 Azikiwe was elected to his first government positionin the Nigerian Legislative Council.  By1954 he was the Premier of Eastern Nigeria where he was forced to relinquishhis business interests.  On October 1,1960 Nigeriabecame independent of the British government and Nnamdi Azikiwe became itsfirst indigenous Governor General.  Threeyears later, on October 1, 1963 Nigeriawas declared a republic and Nnamdi Azikiwe was elected as its firstPresident.  He shared power with thenewly elected Prime Minister

On October 1, 1841, Fannie M. Richards was born. She became an educator and civil rights activist.

Eva Jessye was a pioneer in the world of African American music and is recognized as the first black woman to receive international distinction as a choral director. She was born in Coffeyville, Kansas on January 20, 1895 to Albert and Julia Jessye, but was raised by various relatives after her parents’ separation. Influenced by the singing of her great-grandmother and great-aunt, Jessye developed an early love of traditional Negro spirituals. At the age of thirteen, she attended Western University in Kansas City, Kansas where she studied poetry and oratory. In addition to singing in Western’s concert choir, she gained experience coaching several male and female student choral groups.

Jessye graduated in 1914 and then earned a second bachelor’s degree and a teaching certificate at Langston University in Oklahoma. She began her career as a music teacher in Oklahoma public schools, working in them for five years.  In 1919 she became the head of the Music Department at Morgan College in Baltimore, Maryland.

In pursuit of more professional opportunities, Jessye moved to New York in 1926 and directed a spirituals, jazz, and light opera choir called the Dixie Jubilee Singers. Under her direction, the group, later named the Eva Jessye Choir, enjoyed a successful career which lasted more than thirty years and included a regular spot on the radio program “Major Bowes Family Radio Hour.” In 1935 the Eva Jessye Choir auditioned for and was cast as the official choir of the first production of George Gershwin’s folk opera Porgy and Bess. Jessye and her choir toured with the show, earning international acclaim. They were even named the official choral group for the March on Washington in 1963.

Most well known for her prestigious career as a choral director, Jessye helped launch the careers of many black concert artists. However, Jessye’s career was not limited to choral direction. In 1927 she published a book of songs called My Spirituals, inspired by the folk music of her childhood. Her acting credits include such onstage

On October 1, 1943, Willie L. Williams was born, one of seven children, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He became a Los Angeles Police Chief. He is the first Black man to head the Los Angeles police force.

Joe Black became the first black pitcher to win a World Series game. The Dodgers defeated the New York Yankees 4-2. Black was also the 1952 Rookie of the Year.

Soccer great Pele retires.

California Supreme Court voided state statue banning interracial marriages. Edward Dudley named ambassador to Liberia. Spingarn Medal Presented to Channing H. Tobias for his consistent role as a defender of fundamental American liberties.

Politician, scholar and professor, Mel Reynolds was born on January 8, 1952, in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, to parents J.J. and Essie May Reynolds.  Reynolds attended John Marshall High School on the Westside of Chicago where he developed impressive academic credentials.  He then enrolled in Chicago City College and later completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Philosophy from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana in 1974. In 1979, Reynolds won a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University in England. Reynolds also graduated from Roosevelt University in Chicago, were he became a political science professor. While on the faculty he created the Community Economic Development Education Foundation.

Reynolds, a rising star in Illinois’ Second Congressional District, defeated incumbent Congressman Gus Savage in 1992 and served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 1995.

In August of 1994, Reynolds was indicted for having sex with Beverly Heard, a 16 year old campaign volunteer.  In November of 1994, Reynolds, who claimed that the charges were racially motivated, was re-elected.  However, he was later convicted on 12 counts of sexual assault, obstruction of justice and solicitation of child pornography. Groups such as the National Organization for Women called for the voluntary resignation of Reynolds. On October 1, 1995, he resigned his seat.

Reynolds was sentenced to five years at the East Moline Correctional Institution. However, in April 1997, he was convicted on 16 unrelated counts of bank fraud and lying to the Federal Election Commission. His wife Marisol faced nine counts. Federal prosecutors alleged both Mel and Marisol Reynolds tried to hide from the FEC how they spent campaign contributions. The government claimed that the couple had several campaign workers cash checks drawn on campaign accounts and had the cash returned to them.

As a result, Reynolds added an additional 78 months to his prison sentence. President Bill Clinton commuted Reynolds’s sentence in 2001.  In 2004,

Pullman Company formally recognized the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. Spingarn Medal awarded to Walter White, NAACP secretary, for his leadership and work in the anti-lynching movement.

May 1-October 1, 1867, was the worst summer for racial distrubances in U.S. history, more than 40 riots and 100 other distrubances occurred.

On October 1, 1945, noted R&B singer and songwriter, Donny Hathaway was born in Chicago, Illinois. Before his death, he often teamed up with songstress, Roberta Flack, on songs such as Where Is the Love.

Ambassador Elizabeth Davenport McKune was born on November 15, 1947 in Detroit, Michigan. She became a Foreign Service officer in 1973 and specialized in the Middle East. McKune is the daughter of West Point graduate Colonel Clarence M. Davenport, Jr. and distinguished National Institute of Mental Health psychiatric social worker Yolande Davenport (née Bradfield). Ambassador McKune earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Carleton College (Minnesota) in 1970 and received her Master of Arts degree in Advanced International Studies from Johns Hopkins University (Maryland) in 1972. She also received a Distinguished Graduate Certificate in 1992 from the National War College in Washington, D.C.

Ambassador McKune has served in numerous positions in the Foreign Service throughout her career including Deputy Executive Secretary to the Secretary of State and as Office Director for Pacific Island Affairs for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. McKune was also assigned as a political analyst to the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research, where she addressed issues related to Caribbean affairs.

McKune has also worked in several capacities in U.S. Embassies in the Middle East, North Africa, and Europe.  Her foreign assignments included Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in the Sultanate of Oman, Economic and Political Officer in Egypt, Consular and Commercial Officer in Israel, Acting Public Affairs Officer and Economic Counselor in Lebanon, and as a Cultural and Language Consultant in Tunisia. She also served at embassies in Iraq and Great Britain. Other senior positions held by Ambassador McKune in Washington, D.C. have included Director of the Pan-Arab Media Outreach Center, Advisor to the Commandant of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, and Country Director for Northern Arabian affairs in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs for the U.S. State Department.

President Bill Clinton appointed Ambassador McKune as U.S. Ambassador to Qatar on October 1, 1998. She served there until

Donnie Hathaway, singer, born

Kentucky State College is founded in Frankfort, KY.

On October 1, 1952, Juanita James was born. She is a writer, who has been coined, the gatekeeper of prose.

Trish Millines Dziko is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Technology Access Foundation. A native of New Jersey, Dziko focused on college and ultimately became a first-generation college student. Ms. Dziko also made history by becoming the first woman to be awarded a full basketball scholarship for Monmouth College in West Long Branch, New Jersey.  She received her B.S. in Computer Science in 1979.

Dziko spent 15 years working in the high tech industry as a software developer, manager and consultant as well as a database designer in such industries as military weapons, business systems, communications, and medical equipment.

In 1988 Dziko became one of the early employees at Microsoft Inc., in Redmond, Washington.  It was during her nearly nine years at Microsoft that she became active in promoting awareness of the importance of diversity in the corporate world.  In 1995, while working as a Senior Diversity Administrator for Microsoft, she noted the small numbers of African Americans and other people of color in the high tech industry. Attributing it partly to the limited access of those students and their families to computers, Dziko became co-founder of the Technology Access Foundation (TAF), a Seattle-based organization designed to provide science, technology, engineering, and mathematics skills to children of color. She became the full-time TAF Executive Director after leaving Microsoft in 1996.  As one of the young Microsoft millionaires at 39, Dziko contributed over $150,000 to establish TAF.

TAF’s programs seek to increase mathematical and literacy competencies for K-8 students through project-based activities that use technology as a tool for learning in an after-school environment. Each year about 70 teenagers enroll in the Technical Teens Internship Program that includes courses in programming, web site development, networking, and career development skills.  The program also provides job-readiness training, college entrance preparation, and paid summer internships with local corporations

Morgan State College was founded in Maryland, 1872

Black and white abolitionists smashed into a courtroom at Syracuse, N.Y., and rescued a fugitive slave. Abolitionist William C. Nell published Services of Colored Americans in the Wars of 1776 and 1812, the first extended work on the history of American Blacks. Revised edition of the book was published in 1855 with new title, The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution.

Twenty-fourth Infantry Regiment, last of all-Black units military units authorized by Congress in 1866, deactivated in Korea.

George Carruthers was born on October 1, 1939 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Virginia Union University, a historically black university located in Richmond, Virginia, traces its roots back to the Wayland Seminary, founded in 1865 by the American Baptist Home Missionary Society (ABHMS).  The institution, however, is the result of the merger of four institutions: Wayland Seminary, Richmond Theological Seminary, Hartshorn Memorial College, and Storer College. 

Following the surrender of the Confederacy in 1865, branches of the National Theological Institute in Washington, D.C. and Richmond, Virginia decided to establish separate schools in Richmond to educate ex-slaves. The Washington organization received a $1,500 grant from the Freedmens Bureau and established Wayland Seminary, named after Dr. Francis Wayland, former president of Brown University and a leader in the anti-slavery struggle.  Among Waylands most prominent alumni are Adam Clayton Powell, Sr. and Booker T. Washington.

The Richmond Theological Seminary was initially established in 1867 at Lumpkins Jail, a former holding place for runaway slaves by Reverend Nathaniel Colver, an abolitionist.  Colver secured a lease at Lumpkins Jail in the summer of 1867 and began teaching courses in the autumn of that year.  In 1868 he handed the school over to Dr. Charles Henry Corey, a former chaplain in the Union Army, due to his declining health.  The ABHMS Board honored Colver by naming the school the Colver Institute.   The Institute became the first in the South to employ African American teaching assistants and faculty and in 1876 began offering curricula which included preparatory, academic, and theological.  The school was also incorporated by the Virginia General Assembly in 1876 under the name the Richmond Institute.  It later became the Richmond Theological Seminary.

In 1883, the ABHMS established Hartshorn Memorial College, one of the first institutions created exclusively for the education of African American women.  By the 1890s the ABHMS pushed plans to merge Wayland Seminary and Richmond Theological Seminary.  In 1899

Nigeria proclaimed independent.

Dr. Mary Schmidt Campbell, art historian, becomes dean of New York Universitys Tisch School of the Arts.