Phillis Wheatley only lived to be 31, but she broke color barriers during her short life as the first African-American woman to be published. She passed away on Feb. 28, 1784.

Wheatley was born in Gambia, West Africa, in 1753 and was seized and transported to Boston at the age of seven. When she arrived she was sold to John and Susanna Wheatley.

As a child the Wheatleys taught her to read and write and she eventually published her first collection of poems in a book called Poems on Various Subjects in 1773. She also traveled to London to promote her work and George Washington met with her after reading as well.

Wheatley married John Peters, a free Black in 1778, and they had three children, all of whom died early in life. When the Wheatleys passed away, Phillis Wheatley fell into poverty and died before publishing her second volume of poems.

• February 28, 1899 Albert C. Richardson of South Frankfort, Michigan received patent number 620,362 for an insect destroyer. His invention allowed insects to be destroyed on plants and trees without injuring the shoots or foliage.

• February 28, 1922 The Arab Republic of Egypt gained its independence from the United Kingdom.

Feb 28, 1932 Richard Spikes invented/patented automatic gear shift.

1940: Actress Hattie McDaniel was the first African-American to win an Academy Award. She won the award for Best Supporting Actress for her role of Mammy in Gone with the Wind on this day. (1940 was a leap year and the Academy Awards were held on February 29^th)

1939: Tenor saxophonist and gifted baritone player, pianist, bass clarinetist and viola player, Charles Gayle, was born in Buffalo, NY.

Feb 28, 1942 Race riot, Sojourner Truth Homes, Detroit.

1943: “Porgy and Bess” opened on Broadway with Anne Brown and Todd Duncan in the starring roles.

• February 28, 1945 Charles Aaron “Bubba” Smith, college hall of fame football player and actor, was born in Orange, Texas. Smith played for Michigan State and the Baltimore. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1988 and his jersey number 95 was retired by Michigan State in 2006. After retiring from football in 1976, Smith made a number of television and film appearances, including appearing in five of the six “Police Academy” movies

Feb 28, 1948 Sgt.Cornelius F.Adjetey becomes the first martyr for national independence of Ghana.

• February 28, 1956 Adrian Delano Dantley, hall of fame basketball player, was born in Washington, D. C. Dantley played college basketball at the University of Notre Dame, the United States men’s basketball at the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympic, the Buffalo Braves, and as an assistant coach with the Denver Nuggets from 2003 to 2011.

1961: Actress Rae Dawn Chong born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada of a father who is of Chinese and Scotch-Irish ancestry and a mother of African and Cherokee descent. She is most well known for her appearances in The Color Purple and Commando

• February 28, 1967 Matthew Leonard, Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, died in action. Leonard was born November 26, 1929 in Eutaw, Alabama and served in the United States Army during the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

1967: NBA great Wilt Chamberlain sinks NBA record 35th consecutive field goal on this day.

• February 28, 1967 James Anderson, Jr., the first African American United States Marine recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, died in action.

• February 28, 1968 Juanita Hall, musical theater and film actress, died.

• February 28, 1970 James Amos Porter, artist and “father of African American art history,” died. Porter was born December 22, 1905 in Baltimore, Maryland.

1971: Actress Tasha Smith was born on this day in Camden, New Jersey.

1975: Former NFL defensive end, Mike Rucker was born on this day in St. Joseph, MO.

1976: Rapper, singer and actor Ja Rule was born on February 29th in Queens, NY.

1976: Natalie Cole took home Grammy Awards for ‘Best New Artist’ and ‘Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female’ for the song ‘This Will Be’ on this day at the 18th Annual Grammy Awards Show.

• February 28, 1977 Edmund Lincoln “Rochester” Anderson, hall of fame radio, television and film actor, died. Anderson was born September 18, 1905 in Oakland, California.

1981: NBA Hall of Famer Calvin Murphy (Houston), sets NBA record with 78 consecutive free throws.

1984: Michael Jackson won an amazing eight awards at the 26th Grammy Awards show: Best R&B Vocal, Male for ‘Billie Jean’, Best R&B Song (Songwriter) for ‘Billie Jean’, Best Rock Vocal, Male for ‘Beat It’, Producer of the Year (Non-Classical), Best Pop Vocal, Male for ‘Thriller, Best Video Album for ‘Thriller, Best Recording for Children (Quincy Jones (Producer) & Michael Jackson for ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial’, Record of the Year ‘Beat It’, Album of the Year for ‘Thriller’ on this day.

1990: The Coasters lead singer and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Cornel Gunter was fatally shot in Las Vegas, NV.

• February 28, 1998 Robert Todd Duncan, baritone opera singer and actor, died.

• February 28, 2011 Peter John Gomes, theologian and educator, died.

• February 28, 2014 Emma Ophelia DeVore, the first prominent African American model in the United States, died.

Almanac - Thursday 2/28/19

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