Week of Jan. 8-14
January 8
1811—The largest slave revolt in American history takes place on this day in 1811. Charles Deslandes leads an estimated 500 slaves in an uprising in St. Charles and St James parishes in Louisiana. After burning crops, plantations and killing several Whites, the slaves march on New Orleans. But federal troops aided by a militia of plantation owners turn them back killing 63 Blacks. Deslandes and 20 other slaves were sentenced to death and beheaded.
1836—Fannie Mae Jackson is born. She becomes the first Black female college graduate.
1866—Fisk University is founded in Nashville, Tenn., for recently freed slaves by the American Missionary Association. The college grows to become one of the leading Black institutions of higher learning in America by graduating several figures that played major roles in Black cultural, political and entertainment life.
1906—Poet and novelist Paul Lawrence Dunbar dies. Born in Dayton, Ohio, Dunbar rapidly gained national recognition as a poet. Although he only lived to be 33, he was prolific—writing short stories, novels, plays and songs. In Dayton, he was a classmate of the Wright brothers of aviation fame. In fact, the Wright brothers helped Dunbar finance his newspaper—the Dayton Tattler.
1935—Black Enterprise magazine founder and publisher Earl Graves is born on this day in Brooklyn, N.Y.
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