Nat Love, known as "Deadwood D ick", won the title of expert
marksman on July 4. 1876 in competition in Deadwood, 8.D., where he
also earned his nickname. The range rider was one of a number of
blacks who made names for themselves in the Wild West.
(Howard University MoorlandSpingarn Raachar Cantar photo)
Blacks make mark on History
by Henry Duvall
Did you know that a black doctor
perform ed the w o rld ’ s first suc
cessful open heart surgery? Or that
the phrase. “ The Real McCoy” was
coined to identify the invention of a
black man? O r that the song " I'm
Just W ild A bout H a rry ,** which
Harry Truman so fondly embraced,
was written by blacks?
These achievements and others
make up a part of American history
that many people aren’t aware of.
February is Black History Month,
which means a time to remember, a
time to learn the little-known facts
about black contributions to Amer
ica and the w o rld , says D r. O live
Taylor, assistant professor o f his
tory at Howard University.
T a y lo r is the consultant for an
hour-long special television docu
m entary to be aired during Black
H isto ry M o n th called "B la c k
Achievement in Am erican H is
to ry .’ ’ The nationally syndicated
program , which features T a y lo r,
Sidney Poitier, Cicely Tyson, A n
drew Young and others, highlights
black achievements from the Revo
lutionary period to the 1980s.
Blacks made contributions to
America even before the birth of the
nation, says T aylo r. On March J,
1770, a runaway slave who became a
sailor, Crispus Attucks, became the
first American to give his life in the
struggle between the American col
onies and the British. Attucks and
compatriots were killed in the Bos
ton Massacre.
There were even black M in u te
men who joined whites in answering
Paul Revere’ s call to arms. And
black militiamen Pomp Blackman
and Prince Esterbrook made the
heroes' honor roll at Lexington and
Concord, Mass.
In 1773, a black fur trader, Jean
Baptiste Pointe DuSable, founded
the settlement that was later to be
come the city o f Chicago.
During the posi-Revolutionary
period, a number o f blacks gained
acclaim. Among them was inventor,
scientist and astronomer Benjamin
Banneker, who helped survey and
plan the city o f Washington, D .C .
He is also believed to be the first
person to build a clock in America.
Poet Phillis Wheatley became the
first black woman to have a book
published in America, and it is be
lieved that her book was the second
to be written by an American wom
an.
Blacks were an integral part of the
Western m ovement, says T aylo r.
She points out, as an example, that
James Beckwourth, a former slave,
discovered the pass through the
Sierra Nevada Mountains which still
bears his name.
There were a number o f black
cowboys. Among them was Bill
Pickett, a rodeo star, who was cited
for developing " b u lld o g g in g ."
Another was Nat Love, known as
"D eadw ood D ic k ,” who won the
title of expert marksman in competi
tion in Deadwood, S .D ., where he
earned his nickname.
Blacks have been responsible for
scores o f inventins. T aylo r notes
that E lijah M cC o y’ s invention of
automatic "lu b rica to rs ” for m a
chinery during the Industrial Revo
lution was so useful that it was
called " T h e Real M c C o y .” hence
the origin of the popular phrase to
indicate authenticity.
Jan E. M alzeliger invented the
"lasting machine” which revolu
tionized the shoe manufacturing in
dustry. Inventor G ranville T .
Woods made significant contribu
tions to the development of auto
matic air brakes. And G arrett A.
Morgan received a U.S. patent for
his invention of the traffic light.
Blacks have also made significant
contributions to medicine. In 1893,
D r. Daniel Hale W illiam s per
formed the world’s first successful
open heart surgery in Chicago. And
D r. Charles Drew, a professor o f
surgery in Howard University’s me
dical school, developed a method
for storing blood for long periods
and has been called "T he Father of
the Blood Bank."
Many black literary and cultural
contributions have been made to
America and the world. During the
Harlem Renaissance period, Eubie
Blake, Aubrey Lyle and Noble Sissle
wrote and produced one of the early
black revues— "S h u ffle A long’ ’ —
that appeared on Broadway. Out of
that revue came popular American
hits— " Im Just W ild A bout H a r
r y ," which H arry Truman used as
his presidential campaign theme—as
well as " L o v e W ill Find A W a y "
and “ Shuffle Along.”
It was also during the H arlem
Renaissance period that Carter G.
Woodson, who established the
"Journal of Negro History," spear
headed efforts to foster a national
observance o f black history. In
1926, " N e g ro H istory W eek”
emerged, and was expanded to a
month-long celebration during the
1960s
The observance of black history is
im po rtant, says T a y lo r, because
Am erica and its institutions have
been shaped by the contributions
made by blacks. " T h e knowledge
and appreciation of black history es
tablishes the fact that all Americans
have benefited from the presence of
blacks in this country."