Black History Month

When Black History Month Was Only a Week

By admin • February 8, 2016 - 6:45 am A View from the Herd

In 1926, Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History pioneered the celebration of “Negro History Week.” The precursor to Black History Month, Negro History Week fell during the second week of February because it coincided with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln on the 12th and Frederick Douglass on the 14th. Continue reading

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Black History Month: Zip the Unsung Hero

By admin • February 1, 2016 - 5:45 am A View from the Herd

Zip the What Is It, whose real name was William Henry Johnson, was a freak show performer famous for his tapered head. Dressing in a suit of hair and sheering most of his head to accentuate its unique shape, barkers would proclaim Zip as a creature from Africa who had lived with the apes. But he was actually born in Liberty Corner, a community located in Bernards Township, New Jersey, in 1842. He was one of six children born to former slaves. Continue reading