• Black History Month originated in 1926 by Carter Godwin Woodson. February was picked in honor of Frederick Douglass & Abraham Lincoln, who were both born in that month.

• The banjo originated in Africa and up until the 1800’s was considered an instrument only played by black people.

• Buffalo Soldiers was the name given to the all-black regiments of the U.S. Army started in 1866. The oldest Buffalo Soldier, Mark Matthews, died at the age of 111 in 2005.

• Harriet Tubman was a spy for the Union Army.

• The first Africans arrived in America, between 1526 and 1539 in the company of Spanish and Portuguese explorers.

• Vermont was the first state to abolish slavery in 1777.

• The 13th Amendment to the Constitution abolished slavery in 1865.

• Kwanzaa means “first fruits” in Swahili.

• Violet Palmer was the first African American female to referee in a regular season NBA game in 1997.

• Wilt Chamberlin was the first basketball player to score 100 points in a single game and also the first to score 30,000 points in the NBA.

• Sheryl Swoopes was the first woman to have an athletic shoe named after them.