5 Little Known Black History Facts

1. The first black person to win a Pulitzer Prize was Gwendolyn Brooks, who won the award in 1950 for her book of poetry, Annie Allen.
2. Shirley Chisholm was the first black woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1968. She was born in Brooklyn, New York. Her parents were from Barbados and Guyana and she considered herself a Caribbean American.
3. The first Historically Black College and University, Cheyney University of Pennsylvania was founded in 1837 by Richard Humphreys, a Quaker philanthropist.
4. The first black-owned and operated newspaper, Freedom's Journal, was founded on March 16, 1827. The first editors were Samuel E. Cornish and John B. Russwurm.
5. The first black person to receive a patent was Thomas Jennings for his invention of dry cleaning in 1821.