For all of my February posts, I will be focusing on honoring people with African roots instead of Valentine’s Day and love-related posts. For this post, I’ve decided to do a quick rundown of African American firsts since 1783.
It’s a long list, but I didn’t want to miss anything.
1783
Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose became the first free African-American community.
1760
Jupiter Hammon became the first known African-American published author with his poem “An Evening Thought: Salvation by Christ with Penitential Cries”.
1768
Wentworth Cheswell became the town constable in Newmarket, New Hampshire. This made him the first known African-American to be elected to a public office.
1773
Phillis Wheatley became the first known African-American woman to publish a book with her book Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral.
Silver Bluff Baptist Church in Aiken County, South Carolina became the first separate African-American church.
1775
Prince Hall was the first African-American to join the Freemasons.
1778
The first African-American U.S. military regiment was the 1st Rhode Island Regiment.
1783
James Derham became the African-American to formally practice medicine. He did not hold an M.D. degree.
1785
Rev. Lemuel Haynes became the first African-American ordained as a Christian minister in the United States.
1792
The first African-American Back-to-Africa movement took 3,000 Black Loyalist slaves went to Nova Scotia.
1793
Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church in Philadephia, Pennsylvania was founded by Richard Allen, making it the first African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church.
1794
Absalom Jones founded the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This was the first African Episcopal Church established in the United States.
1804
Absalom Jones became the first African-American ordained as an Episcopal priest.
1807
First African Presbyterian Church was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by John Gloucester, making it the first African-American Presbyterian Church in America.
1816
The first fully independent African-American denomination was African Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1821
Thomas L. Jennings became the first African-American to hold a patent. His was for a dry-cleaning process.
1822
Absalom Boston was the first African-American captain to sail a whaleship with an all-black crew.
1823
Alexander Twilight became the first African-American to receive a degree from an American college when he graduated from Middlebury College.
1827
Rev. Peter Williams Jr. founded Freedom’s Journal in New York City which became the first African-American owned-and-operated newspaper.
1836
The first African-American elected to serve in a state legislature was Alexander Twilight in Vermont.
1837
Dr. James McCune Smith was the first formally trained African-American medical doctor after he was educated at the University of Glasgow, Scotland and returned to New York City to practice.
1845
Macon Allen became the first African-American licensed to practice law.
1847
Dr. David J. Peck graduated from Rush Medical College becoming the first African-American to graduate from a US medical school.
Joseph Jenkins Roberts became the first African-American president of any nation. He was president of Liberia.
1849
Charles L. Reason became the first African-American college professor at a predominantly white institution when he started teaching at New York Central College.
1851
The first African-American member of the Society of Jesus was Patrick Francis Healy.
1853
The first novel published by an African-American was Clotel; or, The President’s Daughter by William Wells Brown. He was living in London at the time.
1854
James Augustine Healy became the first African-American Roman Catholic priest.
Ashmun Institute in Pennsylvania was the first institute of higher learning created to educate African-Americans. It was later renamed Lincoln University in 1866.
1858
The first published play by an African-American was The Escape; or, A Leap for Freedom by William Wells Brown.
Sarah Jane Woodson Early became the first African-American woman college instructor. She taught at Wilberforce College.
1861
The first North American military unit with African-American officers was the 1st Louisiana Native Guard of the Confederate Army.
William Cooper Nell was the first African-American US federal government civil servant.
1862
Mary Jane Patterson graduated from Oberlin College, making her the first African-American woman to earn a B.A.
The first recognized U.S. Army African-American combat unit was the 1st South Carolina Volunteers.
1863
Wilberforce University in Ohio was the first college owned and operated by African-Americans.
The first African-American president of a college was Bishop Daniel Payne.
1864
Rebecca Davis Lee Crumpler was the first African-American woman in the United States to earn an M.D.
1865
Martin Delany was the first African-American field officer in the U.S. Army.
John Stewart Rock was the first African-American attorney admitted to the bar of the U.S. Supreme Court.
The first African-American to be commissioned as a captain in the Regular U.S. Army was Orindatus Simon Bolivar Wall, also known as OSB Wall.
1866
Father Patrick Francis Healy became the first African-American to earn a Ph.D. He earned it from the University of Leuven, Belgium.
Cathay Williams was the first African-American woman enlisted in the U.S. Army.
The first African-American woman to serve as a professor was Sarah Jane Woodson Early. She taught Latin and English at Xenia, Ohio’s Wilberforce University.
1868
Oscar Dunn became the first elected African-American Lieutenant Governor when he was elected in Louisiana.
The first African-American mayor was Pierre Caliste Landry in Donaldsonville, Louisiana.
John Wills Menard became the first African-American elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. However, his opponent contested his election and this prevented him from being seated in Congress.
1869
Ebenezer Don Carlos Bassett, minister to Haiti, became the first African-American U.S. diplomat.
Fanny Jackson Coppin became the first African-American woman school principal when she became principal at the Institute for Colored Youth.
1870
Thomas Mundy Peterson was the first African-American to vote in an election under the 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution.
The first African-American to graduate from Harvard College was Richard Theodore Greener.
Hiram Rhodes Revels was the first African-American elected to the U.S. Senate. He was also the first to serve in the U.S. Congress, as well.
Joseph Rainey was the first African-American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.
1872
John H. Conyers was the first African-American midshipman admitted to the United States Naval Academy. He was nominated by Robert B. Elliott of South Carolina.
P.B.S. Pinchback of Louisiana became the first non-elected African-American governor.
The first African-American nominee for Vice President of the United States was Frederick Douglass by the Equal Rights Party.
1874
Father Patrick Francis Healy was the first African-American president of a major college/university.
Joseph Rainey was the first African-American to preside over the House of Representatives as Speaker pro tempore.
1875
The first African-American Roman Catholic bishop was Bishop James Augustine Healy from Portland, Maine.
1876
Edward Alexander Bouchet earned a Ph.D. in physics from Yale College. This made him the first African-American to earn a doctorate degree from an American university.
1877
The first African-American graduate of West Point and first African-American commissioned officer in the U.S. military was Henry Ossian Flipper.
1878
Sergeant Horatio J. Homer was the first African-American police officer in Boston, Massachusetts.
The first African-American baseball player in organized professional baseball was John W. “Bud” Fowler.
1879
Mary Eliza Mahoney was the first African-American to graduate from a formal nursing school.
1880
The first African-American to command a U.S. ship was Captain Michael Healy.
1881
Blanche K. Bruce was the first African-American whose signature appeared on U.S. paper currency. He was the Register of the Treasury.
1882
Virginia State University was the first fully state-supported four-year institution of higher learning for African-Americans.
1883
The first African-American woman to graduate from one of the Seven Sisters colleges was Hortense Parker. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College.
1884
Moses Fleetwood Walker was the first African-American to play professional baseball at the major-league level.
The first African-American woman to hold a patent was Judy W. Reed. She held a patent for an improved dough kneader.
William Hallett Greene was the first African-American to enlist in the U.S. Signal Corps.
The first African-American to chair a political party’s National Convention was John R. Lynch for the Republican National Convention.
John R. Lynch was the first African-American to deliver a keynote address at a political party’s National Convention. He delivered the address at the Republican National Convention.
1886
The first African-American Roman Catholic priest publicly known at the time to be African-American was Augustine Tolton.
1890
Ida Rollins earned a dental degree from University of Michigan. This made her the first African-American woman to earn a dental degree in the United States.
George Washington Johnson was the first African-American to record a best-selling phonograph record. He recorded “The Laughing Song” and “The Whistling Coon”.
1891
The first African-American police officer in present-day New York City was Wiley Overton. He was hired by the Brooklyn Police Department prior to 1898 incorporation of the five boroughs into the City of New York.
1892
Matilda Sissieretta Joyner Jones was the first African-American to sing at Carnegie Hall.
The first African-American named to a College Football All-America Team was William H. Lewis at Harvard University.
1895
Mary Fields was the first African-American woman to work for the United States Postal Service.
W.E.B. Du Bois was the first African-American to earn a doctorate degree from Harvard University.
1898
The first African-American appointed to serve as U.S. Army Paymaster was Richard R. Wright.
1899
Major Taylor was the first African-American to achieve world championship in any sport. He won for the 1-mile track cycling.
1901
Booker T. Washington was the first African-American invited to dine at the White House.
1902
Harry Lew was the first African-American professional basketball player.
Joe Gans, a lightweight, was the first African-American boxing champion.
1903
The first Broadway musical written by African-Americans, and the first to star African-Americans was In Dahomey.
Maggie L. Walker was the first African-American woman to found and become president of a bank.
1904
Sigma Pi Phi was the first Greek-letter fraternal organization established by African-Americans.
George Poage won two bronze medals. This made him the first African-American to participate in the Olympic Games, and the first to win a medal.
1906
Alpha Phi Alpha at Cornell University was the first intercollegiate Greek-letter organization established by African-Americans.
1907
Very Rev. Fr. Robert Josias Morgan was the first African-American Greek Orthodox priest and missionary in America.
1908
The first African-American heavyweight boxing champion was Jack Johnson.
John Taylor was the first African-American Olympic gold medal winner. He won in the track and field medley relay race.
Alpha Kappa Alpha at Howard University was the first intercollegiate Greek-letter sorority established by African-Americans.
1910
Madam C. J. Walker was the first African-American woman millionaire.
1911
Omega Psi Phi at Howard University was the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established by African-American at a historically black college.
The first African-American police officer in New York City after the 1898 incorporation of the five boroughs was Samuel J. Battle. Battle was also NYPD’s first African-American sergeant in 1926, lieutenant in 1935, and parole commissioner in 1941.
Butler R. Wilson (June 1911), William Henry Lewis (August 1911) and William R. Morris (October 1911) were the first African-American attorneys admitted to the American Bar Association.
1914
Eugene Jacques Bullard was the first African-American military pilot.
1915
Oscar Stanton De Priest was the first African-American alderman of Chicago.
1916
The first African-American to play in a Rose Bowl game was Fritz Pollard with Brown University.
Charles Young became the first African-American to become a colonel in the U.S. Army.
1917
Lucy Diggs Slowe was the first African-American woman to win a major sports title.
The first African-American to enter the University of Oregon was Mabel Byrd.
1919
James Wormley Jones was the first African-American special agent for the FBI.
The first first African-American women appointed as police officers were Cora I. Parchment at the NYPD and Georgia Ann Robinson at the LAPD.
1920
Fritz Pollard and Bobby Marshall were the first African-American NFL football players.
The first African-American bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church were Robert Elijah Jones and Matthew Wesley Clair.
1921
Bessie Coleman was the first African-American woman to become an aviation pilot. She was also the first American to hold an international pilot license.
Fritz Pollard was the co-head coach of Akron Pros while continuing the play runningback. This made him the first African-American NFL football coach.
The first African-American woman to earn a Ph.D. in the U.S. was Sadie Tanner Mossell. She earned a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania.
1924
DeHart Hubbard was the first African-American to win individual Olympic gold medal.
1925
Clifton R. Wharton, Sr. was the first African-American Foreign Service Officer.
1927
Wesley Augustus Williams was the first African-American to become an officer in the New York Fire Department in New York City.
The first African-American to star in an international motion picture was Josephine Baker. She starred in La Sirène des Tropiques.
1928
Oscar Stanton De Priest was the first post-Reconstruction African-American elected to U.S. House of Representatives.
The first African-American woman to serve in a state legislature was Minnie Buckingham Harper in West Virginia.
1929
The first African-American sportscaster was Sherman “Jocko” Maxwell.
1931
The first African-American composer to have their symphony performed by a leading orchestra was William Grant Still. His symphony, Symphony No. 1, was performed by Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.
Jane Matilda Bolin was the first African-American woman to graduate from Yale Law School.
1932
The first African-American on a presidential ticket in the 20th century was James W. Ford. He was the vice-presidential candidate running with William Z. Foster in the Communist Party USA.
1934
Arthur W. Mitchell was the first African-American elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat.
Dora Lee Jones set up the first trade union for African-American domestic workers.
1935
The first known interracial jazz group was the Benny Goodman Trio. The trio was Benny Goodman, Teddy Wilson and Gene Krupa.
1936
The first African-American to conduct a major U.S. orchestra was William Grant Still when he conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Tidye Pickett and Louise Stokes were the first African-American women selected for the Olympic Games. Stokes did not compete, but Pickett competed in the 80-meter hurdles.
1937
William H. Hastie became the first African-American federal magistrate. He later became the first African-American governor of the United States Virgin Islands.
1938
Mary McLeod Bethune was the first African-American woman federal agency head. She was the head of the National Youth Administration.
The first African-American woman elected to a state legislature was Crystal Bird Fauset. She was elected to the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
1939
Ethel Waters starred in The Ethel Waters Show on NBC. This made her the first African-American to star in her own television program.
1940
The first African-American to win an Oscar was Hattie McDaniel when she won for Best Supporting Actress in Gone with the Wind.
The first African-American to be portrayed on a U.S. postage stamp was Booker T. Washington.
Brigadier General Benjamin O. Davis Sr. was the first African-American flag officer.
1941
Josh White was the first African-American to give a White House Command Performance.
1942
The first African-American to be awarded the Navy Cross was Doris Miller.
Alfred Masters was the first African-American member of the U.S. Marine Corps.
1943
Martin A. Martin was sworn in on May 31, 1943. This made him the first African-American to become a member of the Trial Bureau of the United States Department of Justice.
The first African-American artists to have a #1 hit on the Billboard charts were the Mills Brothers. Their song “Paper Doll” topped the charts on November 6.
1944
The first African-American commissioned officers in the U.S. navy were the “Golden Thirteen”.
Samuel Gravely was the first African-American commissioned as a U.S. Navy officer from the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps.
Dr. Howard Thurman was the first African-American to co-pastor with a white minister at the first interracial church.
The first African-American to recieve a contract with a major American opera company was Camilla Williams.
The first known African-American comic book artist was Matt Baker.
Harry McAlpin was the first African-American reporter to attend a U.S. presidential news conference.
1945
Todd Duncan was the first African-American member of the New York City Opera.
The first African-American U.S. Marine Corps officer was Frederick C. Branch.
1947
The first African-American Major League Baseball player of the modern era was Jackie Robinson.
Don Barksdale was the first African-American consensus college All-American basketball player.
The first African-American artist to receive sole credit for a #1 hit on the Billboard charts was Count Basie for “Open the Door, Richard”.
The first comic book produced entirely by African-Americans was All-Negro Comics.
The first African-American full-time faculty at a predominantly white law school was William Robert Ming at the University of Chicago Law School.
Alice Allison Dunnigan was the first African-American female member of the U.S. House and Senate press galleries.
1948
The first African-American man to receive an Oscar was James Baskett. He won the Honorary Academy Award for “Uncle Remus” in Song of the South.
Jesse L. Brown was the first African-American U.S. Navy sailor.
The first African-American composer to have an opera performed by a major U.S. company was William Grant Still.
Alice Coachman was the first African-American woman to win an Olympic gold medal.
Silas Hunt was the first African-American since Reconstruction to enroll at a traditionally white university of the South. He went to University of Arkansas Law School.
The first know African-American star of a regularly scheduled network television series was Bob Howard on The Bob Howard Show.
Amanda Randolph was the first African-American to star in a network television sitcom. She was on The Laytons.
William Tebeau was the first African-American male to graduate from Oregon State College.
The first African-American female reporter to travel with a U.S. president was Alice Allison Dunnigan.
1949
Wesley Brown was the first African-American graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy.
Edward R. Dudley was the first African-American to hold rank of Ambassador of the United States.
Jackie Robinson was the first African-American to win an MVP award in Major League Baseball.
The first African-American owned-and-operated radio station was WERD. It was established on October 3 in Atlanta, Georgia by Jesse B. Blayton Sr.
Florence LaSueur was the first African-American woman president of an NAACP chapter.
1950
Juanita Hall was the first African-American to win a Tony Award. She won Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role in South Pacific.
The first African-American to win a Pulitzer Prize was Gwendolyn Brooks for her book of poetry Annie Allen.
Ralph Bunche was the first African-American to win a Nobel Peace Prize.
The first African-American to receive a “lifetime” appointment as a federal judge was William H. Haste.
Althea Gibson was the first African-American woman to compete on the world tennis tour.
Nat King Cole, with her song “Mona Lisa”, was the first African-American solo singer to have a #1 hit on the Billboard charts.
The first African-American delegate to the United Nations was Edith S. Sampson.
The first African-American NBA basketball players were Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, Chuck Cooper and Earl Lloyd. Harold Hunter, though signed to a NBA contract, was cut during training camp and did not play professionally.
1951
Duke Slater was the first African-American named to the College Football Hall of Fame.
The first African-American quarterback to become a regular starter for a professional football team was Bernie Custis.
1952
Wendell Scott was the first African-American NASCAR driver.
Cora Brown was the first African-American woman elected to a U.S. state senate.
Frank E. Petersen was the first African-American U.S. Marine Corps aviator.
The first African-American woman to be nominated for a national political office was Charlotta Bass. She was nominated for Vice President in the Progressive Party.
Edith Irby Jones was the first African-American to graduate from University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
1953
Don Barksdale was the first African-American basketball player to play in the NBA All-Star Game.
The first African-American quarterback to play in the National Football League during the post-World War II era was Willie Thrower.
1954
Carl Brashear was the first African-American U.S. Navy Driver.
The first African-American woman to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress was Dorothy Dandridge. She was nominated for Carmen Jones.
Dorothy Drandridge became the first individual African-American woman as the subject on the cover of Life magazine on November 1 of this year.
The first African-American page for the U.S. Supreme Court, and the first enrolled in the Capitol Page School, was Charles V. Bush.
1955
Marian Anderson was the first African-American member of the Metropolitan Opera.
The first African-American male dancer in a major ballet company was Arthur Mitchell. He also became the first African-American principal dancer of a major ballet company in 1956.
Leontyce Price became the first African-American singer to appear in a telecast opera in NBC’s production of Tosca.
The first African-American pilot of a scheduled U.S. airline was August Martin.
E. Frederic Morrow was the first African-American to serve as a presidential executive assistant.
1956
Nat King Cole became the first African-American star of a nationwide network TV show.
The first African-American U.S. Secret Service agent was Charles Gittens.
Don Newcombe was the first African-American to win the Cy Young Award as the top pitcher in Major League Baseball.
The first African-American student to attend the University of Alabama was Autherine Lucy. Her expulsion later that year led to the university’s President Oliver Carmichael’s resignation.
1957
Althea Gibson was the first African-American woman to be a Wimbledon Tennis Champion.
The first African-American assistant coach in the NFL was Lowell W. Perry.
The first African-American to win the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival was John Kitzmiller for his role in Dolina Miru.
Willie Mays was the first African-American to win Major League’s Baseball’s Gold Glove.
1958
The first African-American to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 was Tommy Edwards with his song “It’s All in the Game” on September 29.
The first African-American flight attendant was Ruth Carol Taylor.
1959
Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie both won two awards at the Grammy Awards. This made them the first African-American Grammy Award winners.
Louis Lomax was the first African-American television journalist.
The first African-American group to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 were The Platters with their song “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” on January 19.
Oscar Robertson won the USBWA Player of the Year. This made him the first African-American to win a major national player of the year award in college basketball.
1960
The first African-American U.S. presidential candidate was Rev. Clennon King for the Independent Afro-American party.
Ruby Bridges was the first African-American child to attend an all-white elementary school in the South.
1961
Ernie Davis was the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy.
The first African-American to serve on a U.S. district court was James Benton Parsons.
The first African-American tenor to sing leading roles for the Metropolitan Opera was George Shirley.
Edith S. Sampson was the first African-American delegate to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
Nathan Boya, also known as William FitzGerald, was the first African-American to go over Niagara Falls.
Charlie Sifford was the first African-American to join the PGA tour.
1962
Jackie Robinsn was the first African-American to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
John Jordan “Buck” O’Neil was the first African-American coach in Major League Baseball. He coached for the Chicago Cubs.
The first African-American attorney general of a state was Edward Brooke, the attorney general of Massachusetts.
1963
Roland Burris was the first African-American bank examiner for the United States Department of the Treasury.
The first African-American named as Time magazine’s Man of the Year was Martin Luther King, Jr.
Lloyd Sealy was the first African-American police officer of the NYPD to be name a precinct commander.
Elston Howard was the first African-American to be named American League MVP.
The first African-American chess master was Walter Harris.
Cicely Tyson was the first African-American to appear as a series regular on a primetime dramatic television series. She was on CBS’s “East Side/West Side”.
The first African-American to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award was Diahann Carroll. She was nominated for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Lead Role.
New York Renaissance, inducted as a team, were the first African-Americans inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
The first African-American to graduate from the U.S. Air Force Academy was Charles V. Bush.
1964
The first African-American pilot for a major commercial airline was David Harris. He flew for American Airlines.
One Potato, Two Potato was the first movie with an African-American interracial marriage. Barbara Barrie and Bernie Hamilton starred.
Bob Gibson was the first African-American baseball player to be named the Major League Baseball World Series MVP. He played on the St. Louis Cardinals.
1965
The first African-American nationally syndicated cartoonist was Morrie Turner.
Lobo was the first African-American title character of a comic book series.
The first African-American star of a network television drama was Bill Cosby for I Spy.
Micki Grant was the first African-American cast member of a daytime soap opera.
The first African-American Playboy Playmate centerfold was Jennifer Jackson. She was in the March issue.
Benjamin Oliver Davis Jr. was the first African-American U.S. Air Force General.
The first African-American woman Ambassador of the United States was Patricia Roberts Harris, the ambassador to Luxembourg.
The first African-American NFL official was Burl Toler.
Frank Street Jr. was the first African-American to win a national chess championship.
The first African-American United States Solicitor General was Thurgood Marshall.
1966
The first African-American male to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award, and first to win a Primetime Emmy Award, was Bill Cosby.
Bill Russell was the first African-American coach in the National Basketball Association.
The first African-American mayor of a U.S. city was Robert C. Henry.
The first African-American model on the cover of a Vogue magazine was Donyale Luna.
Edward Brooke was the first post-Reconstruction African-American elected to the U.S. Senate. He was also the first African-American elected to the U.S. Senate by popular vote.
The first African-American Cabinet secretary was Robert C. Weaver.
Emmett Ashford was the first African-American Major League Baseball umpire.
Lowell W. Perry was the first African-American NFL broadcaster.
The first African-American fire commissioner of a major U.S. city was Robert O. Lowery.
1967
The first African-American elected mayor of a large U.S. city was Carl B. Stokes when he was elected in Cleveland, Ohio.
Thurgood Marshall was the first African-American appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States.
The first African-American selected for astronaut training was Robert Henry Lawrence Jr.
The first African-American to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame was Emlen Tunnell.
Nancy Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr.’s kiss on Movin’ with Nancy was the first African-American interracial kiss on network television.
1968
The first African-American interracial kiss on a network television drama was between Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner on Star Trek.
Shirley Chisholm was the first African-American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Barbara M. Watson was the first African-American appointed as a United States Assistant Secretary of State.
The first African-American to start at quarterback in the modern era of football was Marlin Briscoe.
The first African-American commissioned officer award the Medal of Honor was Riley L. Pitts.
The Studio Museum in Harlem was the first fine arts museum devoted to African-American work.
The first African-American actress to star in her own television series where she did not play a domestic worker was Diahann Carroll in Julia.
Charlene Mitchell was the first African-American woman as Presidential candidate.
The first African-American woman reporter for The New York Times was Nancy Hicks Maynard.
Danny Raven in Dateline: Danger! was the first African-American starring character of a comic strip.
The first African-American actor to star in the lead role on a TV western series was Otis Young.
1969
The first African-American superhero was The Falcon in the Captain America comics.
Lillian Lincoln was the first African-American graduate of Harvard Business School.
The first African-American director of a major Hollywood motion picture was Gordon Parks.
The first African-American founder of a classical training school and company of ballet was Arthur Mitchell when he founded the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
Linda Martell was the first African-American woman to appear on the Grand Ole Opry.
The first African-American to own a commercial airline was Warren Wheeler.
1970
Gail Fisher was the first African-American woman to win a Primetime Emmy Award. She won the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role in Mannix.
The first African-American to head an Episcopal diocese was John Melville Burgess.
Carl Brashear was the first African-American U.S. Navy Master Diver.
The first African-American member of the New York Stock Exchange was Joseph L. Searles III.
Will Robinson was the first African-American NCAA Division I basketball coach.
The first African-American contestant in the Miss America pageant was Cheryl Browne. She was Miss Iowa.
1971
The first African-American pitcher to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame was Satchel Paige.
Isaiah Edward Robinson Jr. was the first African-American president of the New York City Board of Education.
Gail Fisher was the first African-American to win a Golden Globe Award.
The first African-American female jockey in the United States was Cheryl White.
The first African-American to appear by herself on the cover of Playboy was Darine Stern. She was on the cover of the October issue.
1972
The first African-American to campaign for the United States presidency in a major political party, and win in a U.S. presidential primary/caucus, was Shirley Chisholm for the Democratic Party. She won the New Jersey primary.
The first African-American superhero to star in his own comic book series was Luke Cage.
Wayne Embry was the first African-American National Basketball Association general manager.
“The Men Who Called Him Monster” featured a kiss that was the first African-American interracial romantic kiss in a mainstream comic magazine.
The first African-American interracial male kiss on network television was between Sammy Davis Jr. and Carroll O’Connor in All in the Family.
Bob Douglas was the first African-American inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Vinnette Justine Carrol was the first African-American woman Broadway director.
The first African-American comic book creator to receive a “created by” cover credit was Wayne Howard.
1973
The first African-American artistic director of a professional regional theater was Harold Scott.
Yaphet Kotto was the first African-American Bond villain.
The first African-American Bond Girl in a James Bond film was Gloria Hendry.
Tom Bradley was the first African-American elected mayor of Los Angeles.
John D. Robinson was the first African-American psychologist in the U.S. Air Force.
The first African-American woman mayor of a U.S. metropolitan city was Doris A. Davis.
1974
Beverly Johnson was the first African-American model on the cover of American Vogue magazine.
1975
The first African-American elected mayor, and first mayor, of Washington, D.C. was Walter Washington.
Adam Wade was the first African-American game show host.
Daniel James Jr. was the first African-American four-star general.
The first African-American inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame as a player was Bill Russell.
The first African-American interracial couple in a TV series cast was Roxie Roker and Franklin Cover on The Jeffersons.
Amazing Adventures was the first color comic book featuring an interracial romantic kiss.
The first African-American manager in Major League Baseball was Frank Robinson.
Beverly Johnson was the first African-American model on the cover of Elle magazine.
The first African-American psychologist in the U.S. Navy was John D. Robinson.
Lee Elder was the first African-American to play in a men’s major golf championship.
The first African-American to be named Super Bowl MVP in NFL was Franco Harris.
Barbara Jordan and Addie L. Wyatt were the first African-American women named as Time magazine’s Person of the Year.
1976
Addie L. Wyatt was the first African-American woman elected officer of the international labor union.
The first African-American appointed as a judge in Federal District Court in Virginia was Robert H. Cooley III.
1977
Carolyn R. Payton was the first African-American, and first woman, appointed director of the Peace Corps.
The first African-American drafted to play professional baseball, and first woman to dunk in a professional women’s game, was Cardte Hicks.
The first African-American woman in the U.S. Cabinet was Patricia Roberts Harris.
Azie Taylor Morton was the first African-American woman whose signature appeared on U.S. currency.
The first African-American publisher of mainstream gay publication was Alan Bell.
Karen Batchelor was the first African-American woman to join the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Bill Lucas was the first African-American Major League Baseball general manager.
The first African-American woman to be ordained as an Episcopal priest was Pauli Murray.
1978
The first African-American broadcast network news anchor was Max Robinson.
Jill E. Brown was the first African-American woman pilot for a major commercial airline.
1979
The first African-American U.S. Marine Corps general officer was Frank E. Petersen.
Al Freeman Jr. was the first African-American to win a Daytime Emmy Award for lead actor in a soap opera.
Earlean Miller was the first African-American woman ordained in the Lutheran Church in America.
1980
The first African-American-oriented cable channel is the Black Entertainment Television.
1981
Val James was the first African-American to play in the NHL.
1982
The first African-American to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Drama is Charles Fuller for A Soldier’s Play.
Clarence Gaines was the first African-American inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach.
Roscoe Robinson Jr. was the first African-American U.S. Army four-star General.
The first African-American woman to become a principal dancer of a major American ballet company is Debra Austin.
1983
The first African-American astronaut is Guion Bluford.
Harold Washington was the first African-American mayor of Chicago.
Vanessa L. Williams is the first African-American Miss America.
The first African-American owners of a major metropolitan newspaper were Nancy Hicks and Robert C. Maynard.
The first African-American artist to have a video shown on MTV was Michael Jackson.
1984
The first African-American to win a delegate-awarding U.S. presidential primary/caucus is Jesse Jackson.
Benjamin Ward was the first African-American New York City Police Commissioner.
1985
The first African-American to become a member of the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels was Donnie Cochran.
Sherian Cadoria is the first African-American woman general.
1986
Willy T. Ribbs is the first African-American Formula One racecar driver.
The first African-American musicians inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame were Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, and Little Richard.
1987
Aretha Franklin was the first African-American woman, and first woman, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The first African-American Radio City Music Hall Rockette is Jennifer Jones.
The first African-American man to sail around the world is Teddy Seymour.
1988
Juanita Kidd Stout was the first African-American woman elected to a U.S. judgeship, and was the first appointed to a state supreme court.
The first African-American candidate for President of the United States to obtain ballot access in all 50 states is Lenora Fulani.
Johnny Grier is the first African-American NFL referee.
The first African-American NFL starting quarterback to win a Super Bowl is Doug Williams.
1989
The first African-American NFL coach of the modern era is Art Shell.
The first African-American mayor of New York City is David Dinkins.
Colin Powell is the first African-American Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Barbara Clementine Harris is the first African-American woman, and first woman, ordained bishop in the Episcopal Church.
Ron Brown was the first African-American Chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
1990
The first African-American governor is Douglas Wilder. He was governor of Virginia.
Barack Obama is the first African-American elected president of the Harvard Law Review.
The first African-American Miss USA is Carole Gist.
Renee Tenison is the first African-American Playboy Playmate of the Year.
Lauren Anderson is the first African-American woman to become a principal dancer at Houston Ballet.
1991
John Singleton was the first African-American nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director.
Willy T. Ribbs is the first African-American to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 auto race.
The first African-American woman mayor of Washington, D.C. is Sharon Pratt Kelly.
The first African-American NBA Coach of the Year is Don Chaney.
1992
Dr. Mae Jemison is the first African-American woman astronaut.
The first African-American woman elected to the U.S. Senate is Carol Mosely Braun. She represented Illinois.
The first African-American woman to moderate a Presidential debate is Carole Simpson.
Cito Gaston is the first African-American Major League Baseball manager to reach, and win, the World Series.
1993
The first African-American woman appointed U.S. Secretary of Energy was Hazel R. O’Leary.
Toni Morrison was the first African-American to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Rita Dover is the first African-American woman named Poet Laureate of the United States. She is also the youngest person to be named to that position.
The first African-American appointed Surgeon General of the United States is Joycelyn Elders.
The first African-American appointed Director of the National Drug Control Policy is Lee P. Brown.
Ron Brown was the first African-American United States Secretary of Commerce.
Charlie Williams was the first African-American to serve as home plate umpire for the World Series game. He was umpire for Game 4.
The first African-American to be inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry is Charley Pride.
1994
Darnell Martin is the first African-American woman director of a major-studio movie. She directed Columbia Pictures’ I Like It Like That.
The first African-American to win the United States Amateur Championship is Tiger Woods.
1995
Hal Jackson was the first African-American inductee to the National Radio Hall of Fame.
The first African-American Sergeant Major of the Army is Gene C. McKinney.
Chelsi Smith was the first African-American Miss Universe.
Michael Jackson was the first African-American, and first person, to have a song debut at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
1996
The first African-American U.S. Navy four-star admiral was J. Paul Reason.
1997
The first African-American to win a men’s major golf championship is Tiger Woods.
Tyra Banks is the first African-American model to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition.
Maurice Smith is the first African-American UFC champion.
The first African-American actor to star in the lead role in a comic-book adaptation movie is Michael Jai White.
The first African-American Director of the National Park Service is Robert Stanton.
1998
Alexis Herman is the first African-American appointed U.S. Secretary of Labor.
Te first African-American woman rear admiral in the U.S. Navy was Lillian Fishburne.
The first African-American Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard is Vincent W. Patton III.
Tiger Woods is the first African-American to play in the Presidents Cup.
1999
Maurice Ashley is the first African-American to be awarded the International Grandmaster title in chess.
The first African-American Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps is Alford L. McMichael.
Franklin Raines is the first African-American CEO of a Fortune 500 company.
Shirley Ann Jackson is the first African-American woman university president.
2000
Ezola B. Foster was the first African-American nominated for Vice President of the United States by a Federal Election Commission-recognized and federally funded political party.
The first African-American to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame is Charley Pride.
2001
The first African-American Secretary of State is Colin Powell.
The Most Reverend Wilton Daniel Gregory is the first African-American president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Rev. William G. Sinkford is the first African-American president of the Unitarian Universalist Association.
The first African-American president of an Ivy League university is Ruth J. Simmons.
Beyonce Knowles is the first African-American woman to win the ASCAP Pop Music Songwriter of the Year award.
The first African-American woman National Security Advisor is Condoleezza Rice.
Robert L. Johnson is the first African-American billionaire.
Sheila Johnson is the first African-American woman billionaire.
2002
The first African-American to become majority owner of a U.S. major sports league team is Robert L. Johnson.
Captain Vernice Armour is the first African-American woman combat pilot in the U.S Armed Services.
The first African-American to be ranked #1 in tennis is Venus Williams.
Serena Williams is the first African-American to be named year-end world champion by the International Tennis Federation.
Darren Arbet is the first African-American Arena Football League head coach to win ArenaBowl.
The first African-American general manager in the National Football League is Ozzie Newsome.
Halle Berry is the first African-American woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress.
2003
The first African-American to win a Career Grand Slam in tennis is Serena Williams.
Dennis Archer is the first African-American American Bar Association president.
2004
The first African-American to win Broadway theater’s Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Play is Phylicia Rashad.
Charlie Sifford was the first African-American inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
2005
Condoleezza Rice is the first African-American woman Secretary of State.
Jeanine Menze is the first African-American U.S. Coast Guard aviator.
2006
The first African-American to command a United States Marine Corps division is Major General Walter E. Gaskin.
Sophia Danenberg is the first African-American to reach the peak of Mount Everest.
Merle Kodo Boyd is the first African-American woman to receive Dharma transmission in Zen Buddhism.
The first African-American quarterback inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame is Warren Moon.
2007
The first African-American woman to reach the North Pole was Barbara Hillary.
Stephen Rochon is the first African-American White House Chief Usher.
Tony Dungy is the first African-American NFL coach to win a Super Bowl.
2008
Barack Obama is the first African-American to be nominated as a major-party U.S. presidential candidate.
Barack Obama is the first African-American elected President of the United States.
Mike Carey is the first African-American to referee a Super Bowl game.
Karen Bass is the first African-American woman elected Speaker of a state House of Representatives.
Roland Burris is the first African-American to be appointed to the United States Senate by a state governor.
The first African-American woman combat pilot in the United States Air Force is Major Shawna Rochelle Kimbrell.
2009
Michelle Obama is the first African-American First Lady of the United States.
The first African-American chair of the Republican National Committee is Michael Steele.
Eric Holder is the first African-American United States Attorney General.
The first African-American woman United States Ambassador to the United Nations is Susan Rice.
Ron Kirk is the first African-American United States Trade Representative.
Lisa P. Jackson is the first African-American woman Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
The first African-American White House Social Secretary is Desiree Rogers.
Duke Ellington was the first African-American to appear by himself on a circulating U.S. coin.
The first African-American to win the Pulitzer Prize for History if Annette Gordon-Reed.
Charles F. Bolden Jr. is the first African-American Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Alysa Stanton is the first African-American woman rabbi.
The first African-American woman CEO of a Fortune 500 company is Ursula Burns.
Serena and Venus Williams are the first African-American doubles team to be named year-end world champion by the International Tennis Federation.
2010
Dustin Byfuglien, with the Chicago Blackhawks, is the first African-American to win the Stanley Cup.
2011
Charles E. Samuels Jr. is the first African-American Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
The first African-American admitted to the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College is Sandra Lawson.
2012
The first African-American to be re-elected President of the United States is Barack Obama.
Lloyd Austin is the first African-American Combatant Commander of the United States Central Command.
Fred Luter is the first African-American elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention.
The first African-American to direct an animated film with a budget in excess of $100 million is Peter Ramsey. He directed Rise of the Guardians.
2013
The first African-American U.S. Senator from the former Confederacy since Reconstruction is Tim Scott.
Cheryl Boone Isaacs is the first African-American president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Jeh Johnson is the first African-American United States Secretary of Homeland Security.
2014
The first African-American woman four-star admiral is Michelle J. Howard.
Tim Scott is the first African-American senator to be elected in the South since Reconstruction.
Ava DuVernay is the first African-American woman to be nominated for Best Director by the Golden Globe Awards.
2015
Loretta Lynch is the first African-American woman Attorney General of the United States.
Vincent R. Stewart is the first African-American to lead a major intelligence agency.
The first African-American to be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame was Wendell Scott.
Jeffrey Orridge was the first African-American commissioner of a major North American sports league.
The first African-American elected as presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church is Bishop Michael Curry.
Paulette Brown is the first African-American woman American Bar Association president.
2016
Channing Dungey is the first African-American president of a major broadcast TV network.
The first African-American Librarian of Congress is Dr. Carla Hayden.
2017
Derek Jeter is the first African-American CEO of a Major League Baseball team.
2018
The first African-American artist commissioned for U.S. president portrait to be displayed in the Smithsonian is Kehinde Wiley.
Amy Sherald is the first African-American artist commissioned for U.S. first-lady portrait to be displayed in the Smithsonian.
Altha Stewart is the first African-American president of the American Psychiatric Association.
The first African-American woman to be major party nominee for state governor is Stacey Abrams.
Darryl A. Williams is the first African-American superintendent of the United States Military Academy.
The first African-American woman U.S. Marine Corps general officer is Lorna Mahlock.
2019
The first African-American to win an Academy Award for Best Costume Design is Ruth E. Carter for Black Panther.
The first African-American to win an Academy Award for Best Production Design is Hannah Beachler for Black Panther.
Archie Mountbatten-Windsor is the first member of the British royal family to be born of African-American descent.
Lonnie Bunch is the first African-American secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.
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