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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 6, 2002)
ÍCljr Jlnrtlanò © bseruer Page A6 s p e c ia l edition Black History 2002 A N A M E R IC A N S T O R Y February 06, 2002 PUBLICATION DATES: February 20 and February 27 To advertise, contact a sales representative by calling (503)288-0033 or email us at ads@portlandobserver.com. R e c o g n iz in g B la c k H is to r y M a k e rs In the 1920’s, the first black woman aviator takes flight Muck History Month w as established as a tribute to the many A frica n A m ericans who have g rea tly infhtenced others with llieir stru g g le for freedom and equality. l.earn about these brave innovators and lest vour know ledge of their place in history by guessing the name o f the in dividuals profiled. The answ ers are b lo cked-out, u p sid e down, for vour reference with In th e f ie ld o f a v ia tio n , can yo u g u e ss w ho w as A m e r ic a ’s f ir s t b la ck wom an p ilo t in th e f o llo w in g p e r s o n a l a c co u n t? I have alw ays had a natural love o f flying. A lth o u g h very few w om en in m y tim e b e cam e pilo ts, my d ream w as to d ro p being a m an icu rist and open a flying school for blacks and w om en. A fter h earing th at w om en in F ran ce flew plan es, 1 e n ro lle d in F ra n c e ’s C o n d rau S chool o f A viation. A t tw enty- nine y ears o ld, I earn ed an in tern atio n al p ilo t’s license. T h ey c e le b ra te d m e in the U n ited S tates fo r being the firs t b la c k w o m an a v ia to r. H o w e v e r, I c o u ld not fin d e m p lo y m e n t in c o m m e rc ia l av iatio n . B ecause o f this, I h ead ed back to E urope and llie ir photos. train ed under fam ous G erm an pilo ts and flew a 220 h o rse p o w er B enz m otoring plane - the larg est plane e v e r flow n by a w om an. In 1 9 2 6 ,1 w as in v ited to fly fo r the M ay D ay h o lid ay in Jack so n v ille, F lorida. T he day before the event, I took a prac tice run w ith my m echanic. T o my ho rro r, the p lan e sp i raled o u t o f co n tro l. W ithout my seatb elt on, I fell five hun dred feet to the ground. D uring m y funeral, m any black m en and w om en pilots paid th e ir resp ects by flying o v e r the L in co ln C em etery in C h icag o to dro p flow ers on m y grave. (1 8 9 2 - 1 9 2 6 ) Answer: UBLU3I0J a is s d g The essence of blues music was legendary with this artist N o t o n ly have ta le n te d Blacks sold b illio n s o f tickets. They even in ve n te d th e m achine th a t dispenses th e tickets. The ticket dispaning machine, was invented by Frederick ¡odes, lane 27, 1939, US Patent 2,163,7 } i? $ Dry cleaning process forclothes, Thomas lennings, ( First African American to receive a US Patent) March 3, 1821, US£o(g)la306)( • Folding cabi- net bed, Sarah Goode, ( First African American woman to receive a US Patent) .188^l\,fatenl 322,117 • Urinalysis machine, Dewey Sanderson, ¡nly 28, 1970, US Patent 3,522,011 • Keyword stand, ¡¡Harding & 8. Hirschenson, Feb. 23, 1993, US Patent 5,188,321 • Steam boiler turnace, Granville Wrxxis, lane’ 3,1884, US Pgtent 299,894 • Laser surgery process for cataracts, Patricia Bath, MD, fitly 6, 1999, US Patent 5,919, F $ rTtre esum&dder, jfoeph Winters, May 7, 1878, US Patent 203,517 • Wrench, ¡ohn ¡ohnson, April 18, 1922, US Pafggt T, 4 1 ^ . Disposable syringe, Phil Brooks, Apr. 9, 1974, US In the fie ld o f music, can you guess who is this legen dary blues m usician a n d sin ger fro m M ississippi du r ing the 1930’s, in the fo llo w in g p e r s o n a l account? T hey ca ll me the “ K ing o f th e D e lta B lues” because o f the moody way I play gui tar and sing lyrics that have more agony than a R ic h a rd W rig h t novel. Living in M is sissippi most o f my life, I m arried young. My first wife died at the age o f sixteen during child birth. M usic helped me d e a l w ith h e r lo s s , where I played guitar in jook joints and roadhouses. Just to survive. I’ve had to do blues gigs everyw here I can and rom anced many women along the way. My reputation as a m usician and ladies' man was legendary. During the early 1930s, I m ade a pact with the Devil: he can have my soul in return for musical talent. W ithin a year and a half, I became a m aster guitarist with no previous skill. Some o f the records I’ve made are “C ross Road B lues” and “T erraplane B lues.” Many years after my death, I’ve influenced rock bands like Rolling Stones, Cream, Captain Beefheart and Jimi Hendrix, to return to classic blues m aterial. N o one really know s the ca u se o f my d eath. M any say it w as from stry c h n in e poisoning by a m an, because I fooled around w ith his w ife. Patent 3,802,434 • Home security with IVsurveillance, (Aprie V^frown, Dei . 2, 1969, US Patent 3,482,037 • Automatic safety break system, l&banfcukits, ¡air.'Z 1962, US Patent!,015,522 • Street sweeper, Charles Brooks, Mar. 17, 1896, US Patent 556,7(1 • M tifclho^9ew ad,/iine 13, 1893 US Patent 499,402 • Flectric heater, I bed Stallworth, Oct. 16, 1928, US Patent 1 687,521 • Fitted ttf sheet, Bedha Benngn. Odf.6, 1959, US Patent 2,907,055 • Oil stove, /ohn Standard, Oct 29. 1889, US Pr&nt 413,6$, • Stair-climbing wheelchair. Julies War.ei Nos. 19, 1968, US Patent 3,411,598 • Automatic pressure cooker lu n c iitt Maurice ftg Sejpfc.^9, 1959, US Patent * '* »• • 1972^/5 Patent 3 / 6 9 0 ^ ^ , ( < '> i d i“ v ♦ ¿A 191 • Vehicular restraint system, Leslie ¡ones, Sept. 12, i > From Inventions like the ticket dispensing machine to the many other unknown African American achievements, Black history has touched our lives in many ways. Q Washington Mutual MORE ROMER IRTIRIST.” FDIC Insured This inventive scientist saved lives with his blood research In the fie ld o f Medicine, who was the fam ous black scientist that fo u n d innovate ways to store blood fo r medical emergencies, in the follow ing personal ac count? During my early years of research in the 1940s on blood, I focused on how to administer blood to patients during an emergency. Generally, blood could only be stored for seven days before it begins to spoil. I experimented with plasma, or blood without red blood cells, and discovered that plasma could substitute for whole blood. Some of the techniques that I have created were for processing and preserving plasma so that it could be stored and shipped great distances, including the development o f dehydrated plasma that could be reconstituted by adding water. During W orld War II, England was suffering badly against Hitler’sGer- many. There were thousands of casu ( 1 9 0 4 - 1 9 5 0 ) Answer: alties, and the be mojq y sa//eí/¿) leaguered Royal Au- Force could not maintain banked blood near the battlefront. They turned to the United States for help. I was selected to be the medical supervisor of the Blood for Britain program. Through my successful work with blood preservation and transfusion efforts in Europe, I was enlisted by the American Red Cross in 1941 to establish a blood bank program in the United States. I initiated the use of refrigerated bloodmobiles, which the Red Cross continues to use to this day. In 1941, the U.S. War Department ordered that blood be segregated by race. This made me real angry and upset that I resigned my position as director of the Red Cross Blood Bank Program. It w asn’t until 1949 that the U.S. military stopped segregating blood. ™ Celebrates ? Black History Month USTAURANT t B ar anC* th® T Ö Ä BOB NE Martin Luther King J r. Blvd irtland OR 97212 503.493.8127 ww.billyreeds.com a c c o m p lis h m e n ts of all African Americans Honesty, B! Integrity, Diversi i I 4