Black History

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BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

A lasting activism for Coretta Scott King

In 1968, as a veiled Coretta Scott King grieved at her husband's funeral in Atlanta, the idea that a national holiday would be created in the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s honor seemed remote.

BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

Joye Brown: Embracing King's radical message

Now might be a good time to cut Martin Luther King Jr. back down to size.

BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

Visiting the past

Slave quarters where the first published African-American poet lived and wrote. Secret stops along the route of the Underground Railroad. The home of the inventor-draftsman who worked with both Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell. And the personal archives of "Satchmo," the world's most famous jazz musician during his lifetime and even now, more than three decades after his death.

BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

He battled an uneven lie

The second U.S. Open golf championship was held at Long Island's Shinnecock Hills Golf Club more than a century ago. But a reader of the Chicago Tribune's next-day account is struck most, not by the winner, James Foulis, but by the teenage golfer who finished fifth, and what the newspaper had to say about him.

BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

First black team a big hit

Babylon's Argyle Hotel was a white elephant. It was built too late; the area's booming resort-hotel era was coming to an end near the turn of the century. It was built too big; its 350 rooms and 14 cottages never were more than one-third occupied. Within the Argyle's short 22-year existence, it was sold, boarded up for almost a decade and finally razed in 1904.

BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

Soldier amid segregation

George Johnson comes from a family that knows about military service. An ancestor was a member of a black unit that fought in the Civil War. His mother rolled bandages for the troops during World War I. And, when World War II broke out, both he and his brother, Murray, enlisted.

BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

A pioneer of the skies

Beneath a picnic tent on his Westbury lawn, while a 17-piece band played swing-era tunes under a sunset sky, a beaming Spann Watson danced a birthday two-step with his granddaughter as more than 100 friends and neighbors crowded around.

BLACK HISTORY: NEWSMAKERS

Hempstead's finest

Some have achieved fame. Others have worked in the background. But all of them have made a difference. A dozen people with strong local connections in the Village of Hempstead - they grew up there, or went to local schools, or perhaps played sports - were the first people honored on a Wall of Fame dedicated Oct. 2, 2006, at the village recreation center at Kennedy Memorial Park. Members of the Village of Hempstead Youth Council, all local teens, selected the honorees because they wanted to show others that role models are all around them.

BLACK HISTORY: NEWSMAKERS

Putting a polish on life

Donald Mingo drives east along Hempstead Turnpike in Levittown, arriving at McDonald's about 7:30 a.m. Inside, without a word, he pays the cashier who hands him a cup of coffee, three creamers, three sugars and a stirring stick.

BLACK HISTORY: NEWSMAKERS

Funeral home holds on to its legacy

Joseph A. Slinger may have a new business, but he's pinning his hopes on tradition.

BLACK HISTORY: NEWSMAKERS

Cop's historic promotion

Working in a field dominated by men never deterred Lorna Atmore. Her determination led to a historic achievement for the Nassau County police officer.

BLACK HISTORY: NEWSMAKERS

Dancing like a star

Like many little girls on Long Island, Katrina Moise began taking dance lessons at age 6. Now 16, the Dix Hills resident is an accomplished ballroom dancer who competes nationally in adult categories. At a 29-number competition in Puerto Rico in November, Moise placed first in 26 and won a $250 scholarship. She plans to compete in the New York Dance Festival on Feb. 24 at Roseland Ballroom in Manhattan. Last year, she won 36 of 39 events there.

BLACK HISTORY: NEWSMAKERS

Worked 'til the day he died

When Jimmy Wilson was 14, his beloved grandmother, Julia Wilson, passed away. She had taken care of him since he was 6 years old, after his mother had died in tiny Barwick, Ga. Alone, Wilson climbed aboard the back of a truck with a group of men looking for work and two days later stepped off at a potato farm near Red Bank, N.J.

THE FOLD: BLACK HISTORY

Snapshots in time

Significant local events in nearly four centuries of African-American history:

BLACK HISTORY: LOOKING BACK

A rich tapestry of stories

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Newsday's annual black history special section. Newsday is proud to provide you with this keepsake publication as we take time to acknowledge the history and achievement of African-Americans on Long Island, in New York and around the world.