Literature
8 facts
Frederick Douglass Born
Abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass was born into slavery in Talbot County, Maryland.
Toni Morrison Born
Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison was born in Lorain, Ohio.
Langston Hughes Born
Poet Langston Hughes, a leading figure of the Harlem Renaissance, was born in Joplin, Missouri.
Zora Neale Hurston Born
Author and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston was born in Notasulga, Alabama.
Phillis Wheatley Published
Phillis Wheatley became the first African American and one of the first women to publish a book of poetry in America.
Gwendolyn Brooks Wins Pulitzer Prize
Gwendolyn Brooks became the first African American to win the Pulitzer Prize for her poetry collection "Annie Allen."
Timbuktu Manuscripts Flourish
Hundreds of thousands of manuscripts were produced and collected in Timbuktu, covering subjects from astronomy to law, making it one of the great intellectual centers of the medieval world.
Ralph Ellison Born
Author of "Invisible Man" Ralph Ellison was born in Oklahoma City.