When Missouri Banned Schools For Black Students, John Berry Meachum Started A School On A Riverboat (Cool Weird Awesome 1189)

Today in 1847, the state of Missouri put a significant obstacle in front of a civil rights activist's efforts to educate Black students in St. Louis. But he found a way around it. 

The Blackwell Family Tree Traces Black History Through Centuries (Cool Weird Awesome 1188)

For Black History Month, the story of the Blackwell Family Tree, a genealogy project that traces on Black family's history back through thousands of people and hundreds of years.

By |2024-02-15T06:51:14-05:00February 15, 2024|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , |

When Martin Luther King Jr. Won The Nobel Peace Prize, Atlanta Held A Historic Dinner In His Honor (Cool Weird Awesome 1170)

Dr. King's home city gave him a warm welcome after he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, though putting that warm welcome together got complicated. 

Black Firefighters In Chicago Helped Give The World The Fire Pole (Cool Weird Awesome 1141)

Today in 1872, the Chicago Tribune reported on the launch of a new fire station that would change the profession of firefighting forever by inventing the fire pole. 

By |2023-12-06T08:45:49-05:00December 6, 2023|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |

Lewis Howard Latimer, The Black Inventor Who Helped Make The Modern World Modern (Cool Weird Awesome 1079)

Today in 1848, the birthday of Lewis Howard Latimer, an inventor whose work helped make the world what it is today. 

By |2024-02-27T09:29:07-05:00September 4, 2023|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , |

Jackie Ormes Brought Black Characters To The Comics Page (Cool Weird Awesome 1060)

Today in 1911, the birthday of Jackie Ormes, the first Black woman to have syndicated comic strips in newspapers.

In India, Telegrams Were Still Around Until 2013 (Cool Weird Awesome 1048)

Today in 2013, the last traditional telegram message went out, decades after telephones and smartphones and text messages and so on. So why were there still telegrams here in the 21st Century?

By |2023-07-14T08:04:20-04:00July 14, 2023|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , |

Marie C. Bolden, A Black Teen In Cleveland, Helped Win A National Spelling Title In 1908 (Cool Weird Awesome 1037)

Today in 1908, a team of students from Cleveland won a spelling title at the annual meeting of the National Education Association, thanks in part to a Black 14 year old named Marie C. Bolden.

By |2023-06-29T09:46:14-04:00June 29, 2023|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , |

Raise A Glass Of Red Drink On Juneteenth (Cool Weird Awesome 1029)

There are lots of traditions that come with Juneteenth, like the foods and drinks that end up on the table at Juneteenth parties. A lot of these refreshments include the color red, and that’s on purpose.

Ora Washington, The “Queen Of Two Courts,” Ruled Tennis And Basketball Alike (Cool Weird Awesome 956)

For National Play Tennis Day, the story of Ora Washington, one of the great early stars of women's tennis who also happened to be one of the great early stars of women's basketball.

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