RIP to another one of the greatest music entertainers of all times from Georgia....

Richard Wayne Penniman
"Little Richard"
12/05/1932-05/09-2020

Black history month....

I try to do at least one post during black history month and this time I decided to shout out a few celebrity vegan/vegetarians that you probably did not know vegan/vegetarian.  Pretty impressive list.

DJ Khaled
Waka Flocka
Drake
Prince
Jay Z
Beyonce
Taraji P. Henson
Stevie Wonder
Common
Angela Bassette
Will.i.am
Omar Epps
Chaka Khan
Serena and Venus Williams
Coretta Scott King
Russell Simmons

For Black History Month.....

I have been so busy but I was not going to let February end before I could highlight at least one interesting, unique African American for Black History Month.  Unfortunately, I did not make it before the end of February but fortunately, I did get it done. 

 I found a very unique story about African American brothers from Truevine, Virginia.  The brothers were three years apart in age but what makes them so unique is the fact that there were albino African Americans.  Their eyes were the palest blue, their skin was ghost-colored, and they both had thick, white dreadlocks which made the brothers a hot commodity for fairground freak shows and circuses.  In fact, both brothers did participate in circuses (namely Barnum and Ringling Brothers) but this was not by their choice.

Early in the 1900s, George and Willie Muse (grandsons of former slaves-sharecropping family-tobacco farmers) were kidnapped from their home and forced to be part of a freak show due to their rare affliction of albinism.  They were just 6 and 9.  Word got out that the albino brothers were working in the tobacco crops routinely.  One day a "freak hunter" secretly came into the field and offered the brothers candy to leave with him, of course, they did so and that is how they ended up being part of a freak show.  Between 1914 and 1927, the brothers were famous the world over as freaks.

A photo from one of the shows the brothers were in along side the rest of the "freaks." (Not my word).

During this time, the brothers were not allowed to go to school, learn to read or write, and were not even paid for their work.  The circus people told them their mother had died to make them stop asking to go home.

The brothers were dressed in whimsical outfits, and their dreads were crafted into crazy chicken wattle-looking designs.  The circus advertised the boys using various outlandish names such as "the Sheep-headed Cannibals," "Barnum's Original Monkey Men," and "the Ambassadors from Mars."  Stories were spread of how the boys were found outside the remains of a spaceship in the Mojave Desert or they were found floating down the coast of Madagascar on a raft.  What ever would sell the most tickets. 

Fast-forward 13 years and the small town the boys grew up in was able to host the circus.  Even though the brothers had been gone from the area they grew up in for 13 years, they amazing still recognized their old hometown. 

The circus was set up, people bought their tickets, and brought their families out for a new kind of fun and that is when it happened.  The mother of the albino brothers walked into a sideshow tent and was face-to-face with her sons who had been taken all those years ago. 

She caused such a ruckus while demanding her sons be let go, the police were called.  The boys were allowed to go with their mother but their mother did not stop with just getting them back home.  She sued the Barnum Circus for all the money the boys should have been paid for their work, and they were paid. 

The family reunited.

The brothers decided to return to the circus to continue to earn money since they basically grew up in the circus but now, they were being paid and had the freedom to come and go anytime they pleased thanks to their mother. 

Before they retired in 1960, they were able to travel all over the world, and they even performed for the Queen of England.  They were able to buy a small house and had enough money to live on.  George died in 1971 and Willie died in 2001 at the age of, wait for it, 108! 

In honor of Black History Month......

My favorite black history maker is George Washington Carver.  I have several blog posts just about him.  His entire life fascinates me, everything he did was amazing.

This year I was looking for a unique black history maker who contributed greatly but is lesser known, and I hit the jackpot.  Mr. Bass Reeves first black lawman (cowboy) west of the Mississippi.



Bass was born a slave in 1838 in Crawford County, Arkansas.  His owner was William Steele Reeves (Arkansas legislator).  In 1846, William Reeves relocated his household to Texas.  William Reeves' son, George, was named colonel in the Confederate army when the Civil War broke out and George took Bass with him to war.  Bass found an opportunity to escape and took off west and ended up in Indian Territory making him a fugitive but luckily, all slaves were freed in 1865 so he did not have to run too long.


Bass lived with the Creek and Seminole Indians.  He learned their languages and customs and how to live off the land.  Eventually Bass set up a home in Van Buren, Arkansas and was officially the first black to ever settle the land.  He married Ms. Nellie Jennie and together they raised ten children in an eight room house which Bass built himself.

Isaac C. Parker was appointed federal judge of Indian Territory in 1875.  Prior to this, the government
had no jurisdiction over Indian Territory which became a hiding ground for outlaws during the civil war.

Parker sent U.S. Marshal James F. Fagan along with 200 deputies to round up these outlaws.  Fagan had heard stories of Bass and how he too was once a fugitive and had great knowledge of the land and offered him a job as a U.S. Deputy Marshal.

His orders were to bring back the outlaws-dead or alive.  Bass was quite intimidating standing six feet, two inches tall, wearing a black hat, riding a large white stallion, and packing two Colt 45s.  He is said to have brought in over 3,000 felons.

It is said that Bass tried to follow the letter of the law and bring in the outlaws alive and well.  He took his job very seriously.  In fact, his own son, Benny Reeves, was charged with murdering his wife.  None of the other deputies wanted to bring in Bass' son out of fear of what Bass would do to them but as difficult as it was, Bass went and arrested his own son.  He always wanted to do what was right.  His son ended up spending 22 years in Leavenworth prison.

In 1907, law enforcement was the responsibility of the state police and 70-year-old Bass joined the Muskogee Oklahoma Police Department as a patrolman.

Bass Died January 12, 1910 from complications of Bright's Disease (a type of kidney disease).  I found an interesting statement which stated no one really knows where he is buried.  He was originally buried at Old Agency Cemetery but because it was not kept up, his family had him moved.  Many believe he is buried at Booker T. Washington Cemetery on North Highway 69, Muskogee but no one is sure about this fact.  A mystery in life, a mystery in death.

In May 2012, a bronze status of Reeves on a horse was dedicated in Fort Smith's Pendergraft Park.  The statue was paid for all by donation to the Bass Reeves Legacy Initiative and ultimately ended up costing a whopping $300,000 and stands 7 meters high, that is massive!  Over 1,000 people attended the unveiling ceremony of the statue.

Another interesting fact I learned is that one in four cowboys were actually African-American.  I had never heard that before.  My grandfather always watched John Wayne and then there was Clint Eastwood, James Stuart, Sam Elliot, and The Lone Ranger.

Speaking of The Lone Ranger, even though the character was played by a white man, it is strongly believed that The Lone Ranger was actually inspired by Bass Reeves.  For example, Bass' calling card was to give out silver dollars, The Lone Ranger gave out silver bullets.  And then there is the black mask The Lone Ranger wears.  It is believed since black people in that time wore an invisible mask in a world that largely ignored them, Reeves also wore that invisible mask, and that is a symbolic link between the two.

We will probably never know if The Lone Ranger was actually Bass Reeves but historians have concluded he is the closest real life person to possess the characteristics of the character, The Lone Ranger.  Hi-Yo, Silver! Away!

Bass Reeves was a great man, a part of the fabric of our country.

In honor of Black History Month...........

GWC is one of my favorite African-American history makers.

I thought I would share a few other inventions that were invented by African-American inventors.

Egg beater, baby buggies, gas mask, fire extinguisher, peanut butter (GWC), riding saddles, stove, tricycle, typewriter, pencil sharpener, dust pan, carbon filament for light bulbs, blood plasma bag, spark plugs, door knobs, hairbrush, and the automatic elevator door.  I am grateful for all of these inventions.

RIP...........

Mohamed Ali 1942 to 2016

American Abolitionists with Mystery of History

Just in time for Black History Month.

Frederick Douglass-Civil Rights leader.

*Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey was born in 1818 to a slave woman (Harriet Bailey) and (possibly) her white slave master (Aaron Anthony).  The exact date in 1818 is unknown.


*His mother Harriet was the only woman of color who could read in Tuckahoe, and his grandmother, Betsy Bailey, was a nurse.


*Douglass became separated from his mother at a young age.  She walked in the dark 12 miles back and forth to see him a handful of times in secret.

Anna

*Douglass wanted to read more than anything as a young boy.  He was taught by children who lived close to him.  He paid them with slices of bread for the lessons.  He learned every word in Webster's Spelling book


*Douglass attempted to escape from slavery at the age of 17 but he was caught and put in jail.  After this, he changed his name from Bailey to Johnson and then later to Douglass.

Helen

*He married a free black woman named Anna.  They were married 44 years before she died. Together they had five children.   Interestingly enough, his second wife was a white woman named Helen Pitts (her parents came over on the Mayflower, John and Priscilla Alden).  Pitts was 20 years younger than Douglass and the families were not supportive of the marriage.


*Douglass met with President Lincoln at least three times.

Four of the Douglass children

*Douglass was a republican.


*Douglass made $450 a year working for the American Antislavery Society.


*After slavery was officially abolished, he was paid $100+ for his speeches.  His most famous speech was Self Made Men.



*Douglass was the first African-American to hold a high U.S. government rank.

*Douglass died of a massive heart attack and died February 20, 1895 at his Cedar Hill house at the age of 77.  He is buried at Mount Hope Cemetery, Rochester, New York, in section A.

Cedar Hill

Fun facts:

~Did you know he was nominated to be vice president by the Equal Rights Party?

~He was also the first African-American to buy a house in the Washington area (Cedar Hill).

~Did you know Douglass was 6 feet 4 inches tall?  That is the same height as Lincoln!

~He liked to be fashionable and dress up.

~His favorite authors were Shakespeare and Dickens.

~Douglass was licensed to preach for the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church.

~He created the North Star Newspaper.

There are so many more things to the credit of  Douglass but as you can see from this brief outline, there is no doubt he was an eloquent speaker, a phenomenal politician, a great writer, and a very courageous man!

Learn more here and here.

My favorite Douglass quote.  Broken men cannot not be fixed and there are way too many running around today!

George Washington Carver is my favorite African-American History maker!

American Abolitionists with Mystery of History

*Like Sojourner Truth, Harriet Ross was born into slavery some time between 1819 and 1822 in Maryland.

*Her birth name was Araminta Ross, and she went by Minty.

With John Tubman 1844

*Her parents were Harriet Green and Benjamin Ross.



*When Harriet was 24 in 1844, she married a free African-American named John Tubman.

*She never gave birth to a child of her own but she did adopt a little girl with her second husband and named her Gertie.



*When Harriet was 12, she was hit in the head with a two-pound iron weight.  This was actually being thrown at another slave but hit Harriet instead.  After that, she had issues with narcolepsy.


*In 1851, Harriet freed herself using the Underground Railroad.  This was a network of safe houses and secret routes that enslaved Africans could use to escape to the north and Canada.

*She felt freedom for the first time when she crossed the Mason Dixon line.

*Harriet and Thomas Garret (a Quaker abolitionist from Delaware) help to free over 3000 enslaved Africans.  She was called the Moses of her people.

*Harriet's husband died during the Civil War, and she later married Nelson Davis.

*Harriet was a nurse, a solider, and a spy during the Civil War.  She never received one penny for her services.

*Did you know Harriet Tubman was the first female to guide an armed expedition in the war?  You do now!

*Later in her life, she worked hard for women's rights issues.

Left to right: Harriet Tubman; Gertie Davis [Tubman's adopted daughter]; Nelson Davis [Tubman's husband]; Lee Cheney; "Pop" Alexander; Walter Green; Sarah Parker ["Blind Auntie" Parker] and Dora Stewart [granddaughter of Tubman's brother, John Stewart].

*In the late 1890s, Harriet had brain surgery at Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital, and she refused to have any anesthesia.  It is said she chewed on a bullet during her surgery.  She had seen Civil War soldiers do this when they were having amputations and other surgeries performed.

*Harriet died at the age of 91 on March 10, 1913 from pneumonia.  She is buried in Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn.  She was buried with military honors.

*Harriet Tubman is a very important figure in history and will be remembered for her unrelenting desire to free enslaved Africans and advocate for women's rights.

Read more at PBS.
Another blog post by me, Underground Railroad lantern craft.

Next up, Frederick Douglass.

Sojourner Truth - Mini Biography

American abolitionists with Mystery of History

MOH lesson 28 brings us to a few of the most important people in the history of the abolition of slavery.

First up, Sojouner Truth.

*She was born to James and Elizabeth Baumfree on a farm in Swartekill, New York in 1797.

*Her birth name was Isabella Baumfree but in 1843 she changed it.

*Sojouner was born a slave just like her ten siblings.

*Her master was Colonel Hardenbergh.

*A very intesting fact to point out is that Sojouner was only taught to speak Dutch.

*Colonel Hardenbergh died when Sojourner was 9 years old.

*She was then purchased, along with a flock of sheep, by John Neely for a mere $100.


*She was sold again in 1808 to Martinus Schryver for $105, and then again to John Durmont in 1810. I cannot believe we are still talking about a person being sold. Disgusting!

*Sojourner fell in love with a slave named Robert who lived nearby.  Robert's owner forbid the relationship and Robert was beaten to death.

*Sojourner later married a slave named Thomas, they had three children, Peter, Elizabeth, and Sophia.  Sojourner had two children before this marriage.  It is speculated that either Robert or her master John Durmont fathered these children.  They were James and Diana.  Sadly, James died during childhood.

*John Durmont sold Sojouner's 5-year-old son illegally in Alabama.  She took Mr. Durmont  to court over this, and she is the first African-American woman to win a case like this in the US history.

*Soujourner set out on a mission to abolish slavery.

*She was also lucky enough to meet President Lincoln, and she told him her story of her life and about being a slave.

*Sojourner died on November 26, 1883 at her home in Battle Creek, Michigan.  More than 3,000 were in attendance at her funeral service.

Next up Harriet Tubman.

Black history month

Black history month began as Black History week in 1926 by Carter G. Woodson and was expanded into Black History month in 1976 by the Federal Government.  It is also celebrated in Canada and the United Kingdom.  You can read more at Wiki.   You can find many free homeschooling activities here.

Take a minute to recognize some of the most valuable ideas, thoughts, accomplishments, and dreams came from some of these legendary Black Americans.


One of my all time favorites is George Washington Carver.  I can never hear enough about him.  He was such a fascinating, intelligent, amazing human being.  We should all aspire to be so great and remain so humble. 1864-1943

And I think most of you saw this coming......

Michael Joseph Jackson 1958-2009.
Ya know I love MJ!