BLACK GURUS - GENIUSES - HISTORIANS

HENRY T SAMPSON INVENTED THE CELL PHONE

DR. JAMES WEST INVENTED THE MICROPHONE

GARRETT MORGAN INVENTED THE TRAFFIC SIGNAL & THE GAS MASK

JACK JOHNSON IS THE 1ST BLACK HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION & INVENTED THE WRENCH TOOL

VALERIE THOMAS INVENTED 3-D ( ILLUSION TRANSMITTER }

FREDERICK MCKINLEY INVENTED THE REFRIGERATION SYSTEM & SELF-STARTING GAS ENGINE

RICHARD SPIKES INVENTED THE AUTOMATIC GEAR SHIFT, BEER KEG TAP, AUTOMOBILE DIRECTION SIGNALS, MACHINE GUN, AND BARBER CHAIR

JOSEPH LEE INVENTED THE BREAD MAKING MACHINE & BREAD CRUMBS

JOHN BURR INVENTED THE LAWN MOWER

ROBERT FLEMMING JR INVENTED THE GUITAR

THOMAS J MARTIN INVENTED THE FIRE EXTINGUISHER

ALEXANDER MILES INVENTED THE ELEVATOR

HENRY BLAIR INVENTED THE CORN HARVESTER

WILLIAM RICHARDSON INVENTED THE BABY BUGGY ( BABY STROLLER )

Mae Jemison was a woman who had many firsts under her belt. Before she worked for NASA, Jemison was a general practitioner and attended engineer classes in Los Angeles. Jemison was more than qualified as she was Peace Corps’ medical officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia before NASA accepted her into their astronaut training program in June 1987. She became the first Black woman to be a science mission specialist, as well as the first Black woman in space while onboard the Endeavor for an 8-day mission. She led Black women out of this world.

Alexa Canady graduated from the University of Michigan’s medical school with a B.S. in Zoology. She became the first Black woman to be certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery in 1984. At just 36 years old, she was appointed the Chief of Neurosurgery at Children’s Hospital of Michigan. She specialized in congenital spinal abnormalities, hydrocephalus, trauma, and brain tumors.

Mary Mahoney was the first Black woman to complete nurse’s training in 1879. She was one of the first Black members of the American Nurses Association. After the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, Mahoney was the first Black woman to be registered to vote in Boston. Her nursing career led to her being inducted into the Nursing Hall of Fame and National Women’s Hall of Fame.

Dr. Gladys West was another Hidden Figure inspiration whose mathematics calculations led to the invention of the Global Positioning System (GPS). At the U.S. Naval Weapons Laboratory, West helped create a study proving Pluto’s motion similarities to Neptune’s motion. She also made an IBM computer generating an accurate geo-model of the Earth, which turned into the complete invention of the GPS. Without her, we would be lost.