Entry bubble Celebrating African-American History Month: Hometown Heroes

By: Jake | February 11, 2008 | Category: General

 Richmond Skyline

February is African-American History Month and I thought in order to celebrate I would list some famous African-Americans from my hometown of Richmond, VA. Feel free to list who you think are important African-Americans from your hometown in the comments.

  • Maggie Walker became the first woman to charter a bank in the United States when she chartered St. Luke Penny Savings Bank in 1903 and ran it until 1929. The Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site at her former Jackson Ward home is operated by the National Park Service.
  • Bill "Bojangles" Robinson was a legendary tap dancer who, despite racial tensions, earned top dollar on the vaudeville circuit in the early 1900's and crossed over to the silver screen to star beside Shirley Temple in the 30's. A statue of him stands in Richmond where in 1933 he saw two children scurry across a busy highway and donated money to the city to install its first traffic light.
  • Arthur Ashe became the first African-American male tennis player to win a Grand Slam tournament. Ashe also championed the cause to end apartheid in South Africa and raised awareness about AIDS in an unfortunate way- after contracting the disease from a blood transfusion during heart surgery. A statue of Ashe was erected on Richmond's Monument Avenue in his honor.

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