INSTITUTE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICAN AMERICAN YOUTH, INC.
IDAAY
Presents
THE 2014 AFRICAN AMERICAN KNOWLEDGE COMPETITION
A CELEBRATION OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH
“We cannot afford to settle for being just average; we must learn
as much as we can to be the best we can. The key word is
education – that’s knowledge - education with maximum effort.”
Bill Cosby
IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Overview
In recognition of Black History Month, beginning in 1996, this project was
developed as a teaching tool to educate and empower youth in IDAAY’s Main
College-Bound Program. It aims to assist youth (ages 10-25) acquire a more
comprehensive and in depth knowledge of themselves and of their potential in
continuing the legacy of African American contributions to society throughout
history. Since the Institute was founded in 1991, IDAAY has grown tremendously,
providing several critically needed programs and services to youth and their
families through initiatives such as this one. Today, this annual event is one of
many activities that help the Institute achieve its five primary goals:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Provide effective guidance
Develop communication skills
Build self-esteem
Develop leadership
Nurture appropriate family supports
This packet contains information grouped in four categories: 1) Historical
Happenings/Organizations, 2) Inventors, 3) Arts and Entertainment 4) Focus on
Philadelphia. Youth are expected to learn this information throughout the year in
their homes, in their schools and in IDAAY programs; hence, the competition gives
youth the opportunity to showcase their knowledge and understanding of African
American history. The fourth section, Focus on Philadelphia was specifically
added to highlight some on the many contributions of our native sons and
daughters. Staff is expected to share this and other information with youth
throughout the year, facilitate fun and engaging activities that will ensure youth
retain the information, and provide effective guidance so that youth will work
cooperatively and diligently to prepare and compete with confidence.
Consequently, youth will develop communication skills, build self-esteem and build
leadership.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Competition Format
There will be six program teams competing; each team will be comprised of four
youth plus two alternates. The programs competing this year are: Out-ofSchool Time, Don’t Fall Down in the Hood, Intensive In-Home Supervision
Program (ISP), Main College Bound Program, Truancy Program, and Young
Fathers United. Team members will rotate with each question, therefore
ensuring that all members of each team participate equally.
This year competition will have three rounds and be set up as in a tournament
style bracket. Round 1 will see three matches: Team 1 vs. Team 2, Team 3
vs. Team 4, and Team 5 vs. Team 6. This will yield 3 winners. Of the
remaining 3 teams who lost their match, the team with the most points will
advance to the 2nd round as a “wildcard”. This will act as an incentive for
teams to try their best, because they may still advance to the next round
even if they do not win their head to head match up. The second round will
have 2 matches and yield 2 winning teams. Those two teams will face off in
the 3rd and final “championship round”. There will only be one break, before
the final round
Instead of team members selecting from a box of questions, they will instead
simply tell the moderator which category they would like to answer from.
There will be a coin toss to see who goes first. After the team has selected,
the member has 60 seconds to answer from the time the moderator asks the
question. The scorekeeper will time them with a stopwatch. If they are
unable to answer it, the question is open to the other team. If no team can
answer, the moderator will give the answer and go to the next question.
Whichever team has the most points at the end of the round goes into the
next round.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Rules
1. Answers will be given by and accepted from the team member whose turn it
is to answer Only.
2. Each team will have 5 questions to answer, totaling 10 questions per match
with the exception of the championship match which will have 10 questions
per team (30 questions in round #1, 20 questions in round #2 and 20
questions in round #3).
3. Only the team that answers the question correctly will receive a point. There
are not points awarded for another team being incorrect.
4. A team may not pass the question. They must attempt to answer.
5. If there is a tie between the two teams at the conclusion of the elimination
round, three questions will be asked to break the tie.
THERE WILL BE THREE JUDGES. THE JUDGES HAVE THE FINAL SAY AS
TO WHETHER OR NOT THE ANSWERS ARE CORRECT.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
People
Al Sharpton - Pentecostal Minister, political activist, civil rights activist and film
actor. He ran for the Democratic Party nomination for President of the United
States in 2004
Andrew Young- noted Civil Rights activist, former mayor of Atlanta Georgia and
the US Ambassador to the United Nation during Jimmy Carter’s presidency
Angela Davis – black activist, philosopher, and educator. Known for her
affiliations with the Black Panther party, as well as SNCC.
Barrack Obama – 44th president of the United States. He is the first African
American President.
Booker T. Washington – educator, writer and prominent spokesperson for
African American people. Advocate for economic development for African
Americans. He founded Tuskegee Institute on July 4, 1881.
Cecil B. Moore – Philadelphia lawyer and civil rights activist. He served as
president of the Philadelphia chapter of the NAACP. He also served on the
Philadelphia City Council.
Colin Powell – was the 65th US Secretary of State, serving under President
George W. Bush.
Coretta Scott King – wife of Martin Luther King, Jr. and a noted community
leader in her own right.
Fannie Lou Hamer – Civil and Women’s rights activist. In 1962 she was violently
attacked and imprisoned for challenging Mississippi’s discriminatory voting laws.
Frederick Douglas – writer, public speaker and abolitionist. He was born
enslaved in February, 1818. He escaped in 1838 and continually fought for the
freedom of others. He was firm in his belief that slavery must be abolished.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
George Washington Carver was an agricultural chemist. He discovered three
hundred uses for peanuts and hundreds more uses for soybeans, pecans and
sweet potatoes. He contributed his life savings to a foundation for research at
Tuskegee University.
Harriet Tubman was a conductor for the Underground Railroad. During a ten
year span, she made 19 trips to the south and escorted over 300 slaves to
freedom.
Ida B. Wells initiated her long and dedicated struggle for equality for blacks by
sitting in a whites-only railroad coach. She was forcibly removed, after which she
initiated a legal suit and won. Later, a higher court struck down the decision. She
then became a part owner of the Memphis Free Speech, writing articles
condemning lynching.
Jesse Jackson is a politician, civil rights activist, Baptist minister and founder of
several humanitarian organizations. He worked closely with Dr. Martin Luther
King, JR. and has since then continued to be involved in civil rights issues. He
was also, a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and
1988.
Julian Bond is a civil rights activist and spokesperson for the NAACP. He was a
co-founder of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in the
1960’s at Morehouse College. He has been the chairperson for the NAACP since
1998.
Kwame Ture, formerly known as Stokley Carmicheal was a black activist and
leader of SNCC and the Black Panther Party. He set off a storm of controversy by
calling for and coining the term “Black Power”.
Louis Farrakhan is a religious leader and spokesperson for the Nation of Islam
and African Americans. In 1995, he was one of the chief organizers of the Million
Man March, a day of renewal of African American men in Washington, DC in
2000.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Malcolm X was a civil rights activist and spokesperson for the Nation of Islam.
Formerly known as Malcolm Little, he converted to Islam while in prison. He
believed firmly that African Americans were to be treated equally and “by any
means necessary” he fought for equality and social change.
Marcus Garvey was a publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, crusader for black
nationalism and founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and the
African Communities League (UNIA-ACL). He is most widely known for the Back
to Africa Movement” under which he believed that people of African descent
should return to their native land.
Margaret Murray Washington graduated from Fisk University and was the wife of
Booker T. Washington. In 1896 she united two major national black women’s
associations with hundreds of local organizations, founding the National
Association of Colored Women.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a civil rights activist, writer, public speaker and
Baptist minister. His name was originally Michael but he wanted to follow 100% in
his father’s footsteps. He is known as the father of the civil rights movement. He
was a follower of Ghandi and believed in nonviolence as a direct action to white
supremacy and discrimination. On the evening of April 4, 1968, he was
assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee.
Mary Shad Cary was the first black woman to practice law in the United States
and the first in North America to edit a newspaper.
Maulana Karenga is an author, political activist educator and scholar. Karenga is
best known as the founder and popularizing of Kwanzaa in 1966, a week –long
celebration emphasizing values and practices of the African American family and
culture.
Maxine Waters has been a Democratic member of the US House of
Representatives since 1991, representing the 35th District of California.
Medgar Evers was born in Mississippi in 1925 and fought for equality during the
civil rights era. He was assassinated in 1963.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Milla Gransom was originally enslaved but after being taught to read by the
children of her owner, she later founded a secret school and educated hundreds
of African Americans.
Nat Turner led, in Southampton County Virginia, what is believed to be one of the
most remarkable instances of Black resistance during slavery. “Nat Turner’s
Rebellion” began on August 21, 1831 and ended on August 23rd.
Rosa Parks, often referred to as the ‘mother of the civil rights movement”. In
December, 1955, she refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger.
The bus driver had her arrested. Her act started a citywide boycott of the bus
system by blacks which lasted for a year.
Ruby Bridges, at the age of 5, she was one of four black girls in New Orleans to
integrate the public schools due to her high test scores. She was the first black
student at her elementary school.
Sojourner Truth, born Isabella Baumfree, was an antislavery and women’s rights
activist and public speaker. She escaped from slavery and moved to the north
and continued to fight for freedom and rights.
Thurgood Marshall was a jurist (judge) and the first African American to serve on
the US Supreme Court. Prior to becoming a judge, he was a lawyer and best
known for his victory when arguing before the Supreme Court the case of Brown
vs. the Board of Education.
W. Wilson Goode, Sr. was the first African American of Philadelphia serving from
1984-1992.
W.E.B. DuBois was a civil rights activist, educator, writer, sociologist, historian,
scholar and public speaker as an advocate for Black Nationalism and panafricanism. His best know work is the book, The Soul of Black Folks.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Events and Organizations
Dred Scott Case: Dred Scott first went to trial to sue for his freedom in 1847.
Ten years later, after a decade of appeals and court reversals, his case was finally
brought before the US Supreme Court. The court decided that all people of
African descent could never become citizens of the United States and therefore
could not sue in Federal Court.
Emancipation Proclamation: On January 1, 1863, the proclamation
declared,“that all persons held as slaves within the rebellious (southern) states are
henceforth and forever free.”
Jim Crow Laws: From 1865-1965, these laws were enacted to support racial
segregation. These laws required black and white people to use separate water
fountains, public schools, bathrooms, restaurants, public libraries and rail cars in
public transport. Originally called the Black Codes, they were used to legally
justify the separation of black and white citizens for 100 years.
NAACP: The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People was
founded in 1909.
The Black Panthers: Also known as the Black Panther Party for Self Defense
was founded by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seals in October, 1966.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Inventors
Albert R. Robinson invented the Electric Trolley
Alexander Miles invented the Elevator
Alexander P. Ashbourne invented the process for preparing coconut
Alice Parker invented the Heating Furnace
Augustus Jackson invented ice cream
Benjamin Banneker invented a clock
Charles Brooks invented the Street Sweeper
Charles William Allen invented the self-leveling table
Dr. Charles Drew invented the Blood Bank
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams started the Modern Open Heart Surgery
Elijah McCoy had over 50 patents and people talked about the “Real McCoy” to
talk about a good product
Frederick Jones invented the Air Conditioner
Garrett A. Morgan invented the Traffic Light
George T. Samon invented the Clothes Dryer
Granville T. Woods invented the Automatic Cut Off Switch
Henry Sampson set up the Communication System for the Cell Phone
Jan E. Matzelinger invented the Ironing Board
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Jesse Russell invented the Radio-Telephone, the Cell Phone
John Burr invented the Lawn Mower
John H. Allen invented the pattern generator for simulating image generation
John Love invented the Pencil Sharpener
John Standard invented the refrigerator
Joseph Smith invented the Lawn Sprinkler
Julian Abele designed the Philadelphia Art Museum and Main Library
Lee Barrage invented the Typewriting Machine
Lloyd P. Ray invented the Dust Pan
Marie Brown invented the Home Security System
Dr. Mark Dean created the Small Computer
Michael Harvey invented the Lantern
Moses T. Asom invented semiconductor devices based on optical transitions
between quasibound energy levels
Nathaniel Alexander invented the folding chair
Philip Emeagwali invented the Internet (www)
Phillip Downing invented the Mail Box
Ralph W. Alexander invented the Corn Planter rower
Richard Spikes invented Automatic Gear Shift
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Robert T. Allen invented the vertical coin counting tube
Tanya Allen invented the undergarment with a pocket for reliably securing an
absorbent pad
Thomas Jennings invented the Dry Cleaning Process
Thomas W. Steward invented the mop
Virgie Ammons invented the Fireplace Damper Actuating Tool
William Barry invented the Postmarking and Canceling Machine
William Purvey invented the Fountain Pen and Handstamp
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Arts and Entertainment
Alice Walker is an African American author and feminist whose most famous
novel, The Color Purple, won both the Pulitzer Prize and the American Book Awar.
Bessie Smith (1894-1937) was the most popular and successful female American
blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s. She was a strong influence on subsequent
singers including: Billie Holiday, Mahalia Jackson, Nina Simone and Janis Joplin.
Bill Cosby is an actor, comedian, educator, television producer and
philanthropist. He was the First African-American man to star in his own television
series (I Spy with Robert Culp, in the mid-1960’s). He grew up in the Richard Allen
Housing Projects in Philadelphia and attended Temple University. He continual
gives back to the community through developing organizations and donations.
Chris Rock is an Emmy Award winning American comedian, actor, screenwriter,
television producer, film producer and director. He was voted by Comedy Central
as the fifth greatest stand-up comedian of all time. Produces a television show
based on his life called “Everybody Hates Chris.”
Danny Glover is an award winning actor, film director, and political activist.
Among many awards, he has won five NAACP Image Awards, for his
achievements as an actor of color. He is known for his roles in The Color Purple
and Lethal Weapons.
Denzel Washington, actor, director, and philanthropist. In 1989 Washington won
an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for the film Glory. He also won an Oscar for
Best Actor for the film Training Day in 2001.
Diahann Carol Johnson is an actress and singer. She became the first black
actress in television history to star in her own series, Julia for NBC.
Diana Ross is an R&B, soul, pop, disco, and jazz singer, songwriter, and actress,
who originally gained fame as the lead singer in the 1960’s Motown group the
Supremes but has since then mad her name as a successful solo artist.
Dorothy Dandridge (1922-1965) was an actress. She was the first African
American to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Duke Ellington (1899 – 1974) was an American jazz composer, pianist, and
bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential musicians in jazz as well
as American music overall.
Edmonia Lewis (1845 – 1890) America’s first black woman sculptor. Art work
includes: “Free Forever” (1867) and the “Death of Cleopatra” (1876)
Gwendolyn Brooks (1917 – 2000) writer, scholar, and educator, she was an
award-winning woman poet and the first African American to win a Pulitzer Prize.
Halle Berry won the best actress Oscar in 2002 for Monster’s Ball, becoming the
first African American woman to win this award.
Harry Belafonte is a musician, actor, and social activist. One of the most
successful African American musicians in history, he was dubbed the “King of
Calypso” for popularizing the Caribbean musical style. Throughout his career he
has been an advocate for civil rights and humanitarian causes.
Hattie McDaniel (1895 – 1952) was an Oscar-winning American singer and
actress.
Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859 – 1937) was an artist and the first African American
painter to gain international acclaim. Best known for his work, “Banjo Lesson”
(1893)
Josephine Baker (1906-1975) was a famous jazz singer and actor who began
her legendary career as an entertainer in Harlem night clubs. She epitomized the
Jazz Age wither her flamboyant and exuberant singing and dancing.
Langston Hughes (1902 -1967), poet and central figure of the Harlem
Renaissance, he wrote sixteen books of poems, two novels, three collections of
short stories, four volumes of “editorial” and “documentary” fiction, twenty plays,
children’s poetry, musicals and operas, three autobiographies, a dozen radio and
television scripts and dozens of magazine articles.
Lorraine Hansberry (1930 – 1965) was a playwright and off stage writer. She is
considered foremother of African American drama for play Raisin in the Sun,
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
which was the first ever Broadway production to be written by a Black Woman and
also marked the first Broadway play in fifty years to be directed by a black director.
Louis Allen Rawls (1933-2006) was a soul music, jazz, and blues singer. In
1980, be began the “Lou Rawls Parade of Stars Telethon” which benefits the
United Negro College Fund. The annual event, now known as “An Evening of
Stars”, consists of musical performances and stories of successful AfricanAmerican youth who have graduated or benefited from one of the many
historically black colleges and universities who receive support from the UNCF.
Louis Satchmo Armstrong (1901-1971) (also known by the nicknames Satchmo
and Pops), one of the most famous jazz musician of the 20th century. His musical
skills and bright personality influenced jazz and its musicians for years to follow.
Marian Anderson, (1897-1993) born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on January 7,
1955, Anderson broke the color barrier by becoming the first African-American to
perform with the New York Metropolitan Opera.
Marvin Gaye (1939 – 1984), was a singer, songwriter, composer, multiinstrumentalist, and record producer who popularized and gained international
fame as an artist on the Motown record label in the 1960s and 1970s. He has
recorded over six successful albums in both the US and the UK.
Maya Angelou is an author, poet, memorist, actress and an important figure in
the Civil Rights Movement. In 2001 she was named one of the 30 most powerful
women in America. She has published several autobiographies, essays, children’s
books, collections of poetry, plays, as well as films.
Micheal Jackson, singer and musician. Having 13 No1 singles in the country and
known for his movie-like music videos, he has been cited as the “Most Successful
Entertainers of All Time” by Guinness World Records.
Miles Davis (1926-1991) is one of the most influential jazz musicians. He was a
jazz trumpeter, bandleader and composer. He was at the forefront of every jazz
transformation from World War II to the 1990’s.
Nat King Cole ( 1917 – 1965) was a popular singer and jazz musician, a daytime
television entertainer. He is considered one of the most popular vocalist of all
times.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Oprah Winfrey is the multiple-Emmy Award winning host of the Oprah Winfrey
Show, the highest-rated talk show in television history. She is also an influential
book critic, and Academy Award nominated actress, and a magazine publisher.
She recently founded the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy in South Africa.
Paul Lawrence Dunbar (1872-1906) was the first African-American to gain
national eminence as a poet. Multi-talented he wrote short stories, novels,
librettos, plays, songs and essays as well as the poetry.
Paul Robeson (1898-1976) actor, athlete writer, and civil rights activist, and bass
concert singer. Known for musical performance in the movie “Showboat” in 1928
when he sang “Ol’ Man River.”
Queen Latifah is an African American Grammy Award winning hip-hop artist and
singer, and an Academy Award-nominated actress.
Ray Charles (1930-2004) He was a pioneering pianist and soul musician who
helped shape the sound of rhythm and blues and brought a soulful sound to every
musical piece that he touched.
Richard Pryor (1940-2005) was an American comedian, actor, and writer. His
controversial yet influential comedy acts has continued to mold and shape the
styles both today and yesterdays comedians.
Sammy Davis, Jr. (1925 – 1990) was a dancer, singer, multi-instrementalist
(playing vibraphone, trumpet, and drums); impressionist, comedian, and actor. In
1959 he became a charter member of the Rat Pack, which was led by his old
friend Frank Sinatra.
Sean Carter better known by his stage name Jay-Z is a Hip-hop artist and former
president and CEO of Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. He also coowns the 40/40 Clubs and the New Jersey Nets NBA team. He is one fo the most
financiall successful hip-hop artists and entrepreneurs in America.
Sean Combs in an African American record producer, CEO, clothing designer,
actor, and rapper. He is known as P. Diddy, one of the most successful producers
of all time.
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Sidney Portier is an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and Grammy-winning
American actor, film director, and author. He consciously played in roles that
defined the stereotypical role of African Americans and their relations with White
Americans.
Sonia Sanchez is a prolific writer. Her poems depict the struggles between black
people and white people, between men and women, and between cultures. She
has also written plays and children books.
Spike Lee is a film director, producer, writer, and actor noted for his many films
and documentaries dealing with social and political issues. He teaches film at
New York University.
Stevie Wonder is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer.
He has recorded more than thirty top ten hits, won twenty-five Grammy Awards
plus one for lifetime achievement, won an Academy Award for Best Song and
been inducted into both the Rock and Roll and Songwriters halls of fame.
Tavis Smiley is an author, journalist, political commentator, activities, and talk
show host. His show is currently aired on PBS.
Terry McMillan an acclaimed author has written and published over seven
novels. Her third novel, Waiting to Exhale, spent months on the New York Times
bestseller list and sold nearly 4 million copies.
Whitney Houston is a pop and R&B singer, actress, film producer, record
producer, songwriter, and former fashion model. She has sold over nine
successful and highly acclaimed albums.
Whoopi Goldberg and actress, comedian, television personality, and author.
She has won an Academy, Tony, Grammy, and Oscar for acting.
Zora Neal Hurston (1891 – 1960)is conserved one of the most prolific African
American female authors and folklorist in the United States. A Harlem
Renaissance writer, Hurston examined the roles of African American and Black
Women in Americans society. She is best known for her book, “Their Eyes Were
Watching God.”
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
Focus on Philadelphia
1. Bessie Smith This African American Blues singer lived on Christian
Street. Her home is across the street from what is now the Philadelphia
High School for the Creative and Performing Arts
2. Robert Purvis This abolitionist lived on North 16th street. He was the
president of the Underground Railroad.
3. Julian Abele This African American architect lived at 1515 Christian Street.
He was the first African American graduate of the University of Pennsylvania
School of Architecture and worked on designs for the Philadelphia Museum
of Art and the Free Library.
4. Aspiranto Health Home Located at 2104 Jefferson Street was established
by Virginia Alexander as a lying-in and well-baby clinic to help reduce the
mortality rate of African American mothers and babies.
5. Divine Lorraine Hotel Located at 699 N. Broad Street was built in 1894
Built in 1894, this 246-room landmark was acquired by the followers of
Father Divine (ca. 1876-1965) in 1948. and operated as the Divine Lorraine
Hotel. It was considered one of the finest integrated hotels of its caliber in
the U.S. Father Divine's Peace Mission movement was known for its
establishment of low-cost, morally and hygienically exemplary hotels in the
city of Philadelphia. It was one of the first integrated hotels of its caliber in
the U.S.
6. Fellowship House Growing out of the Philadelphia Friends' Young
People's Inter-Racial Fellowship Committee on Race Relations, Marjorie
Penney (1908-1983) founded Fellowship House in 1941 as a haven for all
races to meet, socialize and pray together. Fellowship House moved to 1521
W. Girard Avenue in 1956, and in 1963 the group opened Little Fellowship
House at 1710 N. 27th Street. The group purchased Fellowship Farm in
1951, and moved its headquarters there in 1973. To learn more, visit
http://www.fellowshipfarm.org/
7. Gratz High School African American catcher Roy Campanella began his
baseball career at Gratz High. Later, he was a record-breaking catcher with
the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1948-57.
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
There is an Historical Marker at Gratz which reads as follows: Roy
Campanella: A record-breaking catcher with Brooklyn Dodgers, 1948-57. He
began his professional baseball career while in high school here. In Negro
League, 1937-42, '44-45. MVP, National League, 1951, '53, '55. All-Star,
'49-'56. Baseball Hall of Fame, 1969.
8. Baker Bowl Built in 1887, Baker Bowl stadium was home to the
Philadelphia Phillies baseball team from 1887 to 1938. Located between N.
Broad Street and 15th Street, between W. Huntingdon Street and W. Lehigh
Avenue. The Phillies moved in 1938 to join the Philadelphia Athletics (A's)
baseball team at Shibe Park (see entry). The stadium was demolished in
1950. The Phillies' baseball park from its opening in 1887 until 1938. Rebuilt
1895; hailed as nation's finest stadium. Site of first World Series attended by
U.S. President, 1915; Negro League World Series, 1924-26; Babe Ruth's
last major league game, 1935. Razed 1950.
9. Joe Frazier Gym Originally a venue for ballroom dancing, in 1968 this
building became the home-base gym for heavyweight boxing champion Joe
Frazier.
10.
North Broad Street StationThis building was designed by African
American architect Julian Abele (1881-1950) ca. 1928 while he was the chief
designer in the office of Horace Trumbauer, according to Wilson's dictionary
of African American architects.
11.
Opportunities Industrialization Centers (OIC) Founded in 1964 by
the Reverend Dr. Leon H. Sullivan (1922-2001) of Zion Baptist Church (see
entry), the OIC encourages young people to learn marketable job skills and
enter the work-force. The first training center was located in an abandoned
jail at this address. The OIC has since provided skills training to more than 1
million people in 145 cities throughout the U.S. and abroad. The
headquarters is currently located at 1231 N. Broad Street. To learn more,
visit http://www.philaoic.org/ Text of Historical Marker: Established here in
an abandoned jailhouse in 1964, O.I.C. was founded by Rev. Leon H.
Sullivan and achieved worldwide recognition as a self-help vocational
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training center for Blacks which opened job opportunities formerly closed to
them.
12.
Philadelphia Museum of Art As the chief designer for Horace
Trumbauer, Julian Francis Abele (1881-1950) was the architect for the
museum as well as the main branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia (see
entry) and several buildings at Duke University. Abele was the first black
graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's School of Architecture after his
term at the Institute for Colored Youth (see entry).
13.
Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania (Masonic Hall)This
fraternal order is named for Prince Hall, who established the nation's first
Masonic lodge for African-Americans. Originally located on Lombard Street
between 5th and 6th Streets (see entry), the lodge moved to a larger
building on this site on North Broad Street when activities such as sports
leagues expanded. Previously, this estate was owned by Christopher J.
Perry (1854-1920) of the Philadelphia Tribune newspaper Text of
Historical Marker: This Masonic lodge was named after Rev. Prince Hall,
founder of Freemasonry among Africans. The first Grand Master of African
Masonry was Absalom Jones, organizer in 1797 of Philadelphia's first lodge,
the African Lodge of Free Masons.
14. Pearl Theater Considered a "premier colored theater" and commonly called
"The Black Pearl," the Pearl Theater had all of the top bands and acts of the
black circuit after it opened in 1927. Pearl Bailey (1918-1990, see entry) made
her first stage appearance here in an amateur talent show while her brother Bill
Bailey sold candy in the back of the house. The three-story red brick structure
had a lavish interior with jeweled light fixtures and red velvet hangings, a
Kimball Theater Organ and an 11-piece pit orchestra.
15.
Pyramid Club Address: 1517 W. Girard Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19130
Founded in 1937 and formally opened three years later, the Pyramid Club
was a small, exclusive club for black professionals. Members included
Raymond Pace Alexander, Robert N. C. Nix, John Mosley, Dr. William
Warrick and Theodore Spaulding. The club hosted a wide range of social
and cultural activities, including performances by Marian Anderson and
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Duke Ellington and, after 1941, annual art exhibitions for African American
artists. The club was dissolved in 1963. The Italianate townhouse is now
owned by the YWCA.
16.
U.S. Post Office (Philadelphia) Address: Germantown Ave. and
Luzerne St. Philadelphia, PA 19140 This building was designed by African
American architect James Plater (1908-1965) in the Jim Crow era, according
to Wilson's dictionary of African American architects.
17.
Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA )Address: 160911 Cecil B. Moore Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19121:In 1923, as many as 6,000
African-Americans were members of the New York City-based UNIA.
Founded in 1914 by Marcus Garvey (1887-1940), the organization was
Afrocentric in ideology and promoted African colonization, black business
and racial pride. Garvey spoke many times in Philadelphia between 1916
and 1924, including at the Academy of Music, the People's Church at 15th
and Christian Streets, and Mother Bethel AME Church. The organization
remains active today.
18.
Uptown Theater Address: 2240 N. Broad St Philadelphia, PA 19132
Opened in 1929 as a movie theater, the Uptown Theater later became a
performance venue and hosted numerous African American greats from the
1950s to the late 1970s. Similar to Harlem's Apollo Theater, the Uptown helped
launch the careers of Stevie Wonder and Diana Ross.
19.
YWCA Branch for Colored Girls and Women Address: 6128
Germantown Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19144. African American tennis great
Ora Washington (1899-1971) played and taught at this Germantown YWCA
Branch for Colored Girls and Women, which occupied this Second Empire
building from 1917 to 1958. Built for approximately $100,000 in 1854 as
Charles Megargee's mansion, after Megargee's death in 1884 the building
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IDAAY’s 2014 African American Knowledge Competition
also housed a school and the Young Republican Club. The building is now
home to the Germantown branch of the Settlement Music School.
Ora Washington: African American athlete who dominated black women?s
tennis, 1929-1937. She won eight national singles titles from American
Tennis Association; starred with Philadelphia Tribunes, women’s basketball
team, 1932-1942; played and taught here at YWCA.
20.
John Trower Catering Company Address: 5706 Germantown Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19144 : Said to have been the wealthiest black of his time
in Pennsylvania, John Trower (1849-1911) moved to Germantown in 1870
and six years later bought this building, the former Germantown Savings
Fund building, which stood opposite the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad
station. Born in Virginia, Trower established himself in the catering business,
even holding the contract for the Cramp Shipyards on the Delaware River,
and made real estate investments in Germantown and Ocean City, Md. His
local philanthropy included financing the building of Cherry Church and the
Zion African Baptist Church, and he organized a building and loan
association.
21.
Pelham District Address: Pelham Rd. between Greene St. and
Germantown Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19144 African American realtor,
contractor and quarry owner William Byrd is said to have furnished the
stones for Germantown Avenue and Mt. Zion Church in the Pelham
neighborhood of Germantown. According to "A Souvenir of Germantown,"
he built more than 50 homes. Pelham was built in response to the
development of Germantown's second railroad, the Chestnut Hill line of the
Pennsylvania Railroad, which began operations west of Germantown
Avenue in 1884. The commuter neighborhood's Colonial Revival homes
extend along Pelham Road and its tributaries between Upsal Station (1884)
and the former Pelham Trust Company (1907) on Germantown Avenue.
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