On May 26, 1949, actress Pam Grier was born in Winston-Salem.
On May 15, 1918, Henry Beard Delany became the first black Episcopal bishop in North Carolina and only the second in the United States.
On May 11, 1970, Henry Marrow, a 23-year-old African American Vietnam veteran, was murdered in Oxford. Marrow was approaching Robert Teel’s store to buy a Coca-Cola when he spoke to a young white woman.
On May 5, 1972, legendary bluesman Reverend Gary Davis died. Renowned as a finger-style ragtime guitar player, he influenced generations of players.
On March 24, 1862, African American educational leader George E. Davis was born in Wilmington. Davis was the primary organizer and fundraiser for the Rosenwald schools movement in North Carolina.
On March 21, 1949, the Freedom Riders surrendered at the Orange County Courthouse in Hillsborough and were sent to segregated chain gangs.
On March 12, 1944, an all-white team from Duke University’s medical school faced off against an all-black team from what is now North Carolina Central University, the Eagles, in a secret, interracial basketball game.
On March 9, 1891, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University was founded as a land grant institution for African Americans.
On March 4, 1861, successful African American dressmaker Elizabeth Keckley met soon-to-be First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln for the first time at the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C.