North Carolina Black History And Facts

March 21, 1949, the Freedom Riders surrendered at the Orange County Courthouse in Hillsborough and were sent to segregated chain gangs. ⛓️🚌
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In 1946, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that segregation on interstate buses and trains was unconstitutional—but across the South, the reality told a very different story. Laws may have changed, but enforcement had not.
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In response, the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) launched a bold and dangerous test of the system. In April 1947, in*******al groups boarded Greyhound and Trailways buses and rode into the segregated South in what became known as the “Journey of Reconciliation.” ✊🏾✊🏻
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These brave men became the original Freedom Riders—long before the more widely known rides of the 1960s.
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In Chapel Hill in April 1947, four riders—including civil rights strategist Bayard Rustin—were arrested. Rather than quietly accepting injustice, they chose to challenge it head-on.
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By 1949, Rustin and two white protesters returned to North Carolina, surrendered in Hillsborough, and were sentenced to segregated chain gangs—a brutal punishment meant to break their spirit.
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But it didn’t.
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Rustin documented the experience in powerful journal entries, exposing the harsh realities of Jim Crow justice. 📖 His courage—and the actions of the 1947 riders—helped lay the groundwork for future movements, influencing Rosa Parks in 1955 and inspiring the historic Freedom Rides of 1960–1961.
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🔥 These men didn’t just ride buses—they helped move a nation.
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🖤 Before the headlines… before the marches… there were the riders who refused to turn back.
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March 20, 1933. George Lee Altman was born in Goldsboro, NC (Wayne County) —a hometown hero whose journey carried him from HBCU greatness to Major League Baseball and across the world to Japan, leaving a powerful legacy at every stop along the way. 🌍⚾
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🏫 Altman’s baseball journey began at Tennessee State University—but not in the way you might expect. He originally only played basketball, as the school did not have a baseball team until his junior year.
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During that time, the program was led by legendary coach John McClendon, a Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame coach who had studied under Dr. James Naismith. Even before McClendon arrived, Altman’s Tennessee State team made history as the first HBCU to participate in the NAIA national basketball tournament. 🏀
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When baseball was introduced during his junior year, Altman stepped onto the diamond—and everything changed. ⚾
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He played alongside future Major Leaguer Fred Valentine, competing not only against college teams but also Army base teams and Negro League teams, gaining invaluable experience early on.
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👉 His path to professional baseball came quickly. A Tennessee A&I official recommended him to the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League. At his tryout, Altman impressed immediately and was added to the team—playing three months in 1955.
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🔥 He was then signed by the Chicago Cubs in August 1955—on the recommendation of future Hall of Famer Buck O’Neil, the Monarchs’ player-manager who later became a Cubs scout. That connection helped launch Altman’s Major League career.
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He went on to play for the Chicago Cubs (from 1959 to 1962, and from 1965 to 1967), St. Louis Cardinals (1963), and New York Mets (1964). In a nine-season MLB career, Altman posted a .269 batting average with 101 home runs and 403 RBIs in 991 games—known for his smooth left-handed swing and dependable power. 💥
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But Altman’s story didn’t stop in America…
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He became a star in Japan, playing from 1968 through 1975 for the Lotte Orions and Hanshin Tigers. There, he batted .309 with 205 home runs and dominated the league—leading the Pacific League in hits (170), runs (84), and RBIs (100) in 1968, while earning “Best Nine” honors in 1968, 1970, and 1971. 🇯🇵🏆
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👉 Fun Fact: Altman credited martial arts training for improving his discipline, balance, and performance on the field. 🥋
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Beyond athletics, Altman was also a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., representing a legacy of leadership, scholarship, and service. 🤝
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His honors reflect a life of impact:
🏅 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame (1961)
🏅 Tennessee State University Hall of Fame (1983)
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Back home, Goldsboro celebrated its hometown star with George Altman Day in February 1960—a testament to the pride he brought to North Carolina. ❤️
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Altman passed away on November 24, 2025, at the age of 92, but his legacy continues to inspire—from Tennessee State to the Negro Leagues, MLB, and international baseball.

🙏 Today, we celebrate not just a player—but a pioneer, scholar-athlete, and global ambassador of the game.

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✨Mr. Charles Vanhook understood the land in a way that only a farmer could. When he was interviewed by the Farm Security Administration in July 1939, he said, “Land is like folks. It gets tired and needs a rest.”

According to the interview notes, he was 69 years old when this photograph was taken, placing his birth around 1870. Throughout his life, the economy of Person County, North Carolina was deeply tied to to***co farming. Charles toiled as a sharecropper, a form of slavery after the Civil War. on a six-acre farm. He and his family were allowed to reside on the farm the in exchange for their labor growing to***co under the illusion of freedom.

His photograph was taken by Dorothea Lange, who came to Person County, North Carolina, on assignment in July 1939 for the Farm Security Administration, a New Deal agency created during the Great Depression.

Lange and other photographers traveled across the rural South in the 1930s, documenting the lives and conditions of farmers and sharecroppers. Their work helped bring national attention to the hardships faced by rural communities during that era.

📸Photograph by Dorothea Lange, courtesy of the Library of Congress.

March 19, 2010, Walter E. Gaskin Sr., a proud alumnus of Savannah State University NROTC, was confirmed by the United States Senate and promoted to Lieutenant General ⭐⭐⭐—becoming just the FOURTH Black American in U.S. Marine Corps history to reach the elite three-star rank. ✊🏾
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Walter Edward Gaskin was born and raised in Savannah, Georgia.
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🎖️ Lt. Gen. Gaskin went on to serve on the global stage as Deputy Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, representing American leadership at the highest levels of international defense cooperation through NATO.
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⚔️ His command experience is nothing short of legendary:
• Commanding General of the 2d Marine Division at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune
• Leader of II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) during a full combat deployment in Al Anbar Province during the Iraq War
• Oversaw multinational operations as Commanding General of Multinational Forces-West
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🌍 His global service included key roles in:
• Okinawa with the 3rd Marine Division
• Seoul with Combined Forces Command
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🎓 A scholar-warrior:
• Bachelor’s from Savannah State (NROTC)
• Summa Cum Laude Master’s from University of Oklahoma
• Executive education at Harvard Kennedy School
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🏅 Decorations include:
Defense Distinguished Service Medal • Defense Superior Service Medal • Legion of Merit • Bronze Star Medal
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After nearly 40 years of service (1974–2013) in the United States Marine Corps, Gaskin continued to lead—serving in the private sector and later appointed in 2021 by Roy Cooper as Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.
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💥 From the battlefield… to the boardroom… to state leadership—Lt. Gen. Gaskin’s legacy is one of excellence, resilience, and trailblazing achievement.

📢 His story reminds us: Representation at the highest levels isn’t given—it’s earned and needed.
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🇺🇸

North Carolina is home to some truly incredible museums.

March 19, 1894, Loretta Mary Aiken, better known as "Moms Mabley" was born in Brevard, NC
(Transylvania County). From unimaginable pain to unstoppable laughter, Moms Mabley became one of the most groundbreaking comedians in American history. The granddaughter of enslaved Africans of royal lineage, she left home as a teenager and joined a minstrel show in Pittsburgh—launching a legendary 60-year career that spanned Black clubs, Broadway, television, and film. She released more than 20 comedy albums during her lifetime. (March 19, 1894 – May 23, 1975).
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Mabley shattered barriers—becoming the first female comedian to perform at Harlem’s iconic Apollo Theater in 1940, and later performing at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.
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But behind the laughter was a brutal truth shaped by racism and injustice in the Jim Crow South. Mabley’s comedy stems from being r***d many times and becoming pregnant at age 11 and 13 by the town's white sheriff. The sheriff initially blamed the r**e on another Black male but later confessed to the “crime.” Under Jim Crow laws, the sheriff was never prosecuted or held accountable—and was allowed to remain in his position.
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Mabley turned her pain into powerful comedy that resonated across generations.
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In 1909, a year after Aiken left, her father was killed when a fire engine exploded while he was volunteering as a firefighter. Her mother was killed a few years later, run over by a truck while returning home from church on Christmas Day. Both deaths were believed to be connected to her reporting the r**es by the sheriff—another haunting reflection of the dangers Black families faced for speaking truth in that era.
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At just 14, fearing for her life, she fled to Cleveland and joined a traveling show starring Butterbeans and Susie—beginning a rise that would change American entertainment forever.
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Mabley became one of the most successful Black entertainers of her time and one of the few women to perform at Connie’s Inn during the Harlem Renaissance. She also made history by living openly as a lesbian—coming out around age 27 in 1921, making her one of the first openly gay comedians.
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In the 1960s, she reached a broader audience, performing at the Harlem Cultural Festival and landing a Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 at age 75 with “Abraham, Martin and John.”
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Even after suffering a heart attack in 1974, she returned to the stage just three weeks later—still making people laugh.
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May 23, 1975, the world lost a legend—but her legacy lives on.
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She inspired characters like Grandma Klump and was honored in an HBO documentary by Whoopi Goldberg. She was later portrayed by Wanda Sykes on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and recognized as an LGBTQ+ icon.
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Her influence even reached global stages—honored by U2 during their The Joshua Tree tour—and remembered by The New York Times Magazine among artists whose work was lost in the 2008 Universal fire.
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Moms Mabley didn’t just make people laugh—she exposed truth, survived injustice, and turned pain into power.

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🏀 "I'M BACK."

March 18, 1995, Michael Jordan changed the course of sports history forever with just two iconic words. "I'M BACK."
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After 17 months away from the hardwood, Michael Jordan officially ended his first retirement and baseball experiment to return to the Chicago Bulls. Here are the legendary facts behind one of the greatest "Where were you?" moments in sports:
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The Announcement: Eschewing a massive press conference, MJ's agent simply faxed a two-word press release: "I'm back."
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The New Look: Because his legendary #23 had already been hoisted to the rafters, Jordan took the court the following day wearing #45—the number he wore in high school and while playing for the Birmingham Barons.
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Ratings Gold: His return game against the Indiana Pacers became the most-watched regular-season NBA game in 20 years, drawing a staggering 10.9 Nielsen rating.
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The Performance: Despite the "rust," MJ put up 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists in 43 minutes, proving the GOAT hadn't missed a beat.
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What is your favorite Michael Jordan memory from his second stint with the Bulls? Let us know in the comments
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March 17, 1967 History was made when the Winston-Salem State University Rams defeated the Missouri State University Bears 77–74 in the NCAA Division II National Championship game in Evansville, Indiana!🏀🔥
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In that moment, WSSU became the FIRST historically Black college in the nation to win an NCAA national championship—a groundbreaking achievement that forever changed college basketball. 🙌🏾
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The victory capped off an incredible 30–1 season, proving resilience and dominance after finishing third in the CIAA tournament behind North Carolina A&T State University and Howard University.
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Leading the charge was the electrifying Earl Monroe—“The Pearl”—whose dazzling performance earned him NCAA Division II Player of the Year and Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors. He would go on to shine in the NBA with the Baltimore Bullets and the New York Knicks, becoming a Hall of Fame legend.
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Guiding this historic squad was iconic coach Clarence Gaines, affectionately known as “Big House,” who led the program for nearly 50 years and earned NCAA Division II Coach of the Year honors. ✊🏾

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Q&A: Accountant unseats a swing-vote NC House incumbent, will bolster Stein's veto
WUNC News

Patricia Smith won the N.C. House Democratic primary in District 23.
A small-town accountant and minister pulled off an upset in this month’s primary over a six-term incumbent known for crossing party lines.

Republicans will soon have a harder time overriding Gov. Josh Stein’s vetoes. Three moderate Democrats who helped give House Republicans what they call a “working supermajority” all lost their primaries.

And while two of those races in Charlotte got a lot of attention, the third race in a cluster of three rural eastern North Carolina counties was more of a surprise. Rep. Shelly Willingham, D-Edgecombe, has survived previous attempts to unseat him in a primary (he got nearly 80% of the vote against a challenger in 2024).

And while Stein endorsed a challenger to Rep. Carla Cunningham in Charlotte, he didn’t make any endorsements in the House District 23 race.

Willingham’s campaign raised five times as much money as his challenger, Patricia Smith. But on primary day, Smith won 56% of the vote. She won a majority in Martin and Bertie counties, while Willingham won his home county of Edgecombe.

Smith will face Republican Brent Roberson in November's election, but the district favors Democrats.

WUNC News spoke with Smith to learn more about her campaign for this week’s episode of the WUNC Politics Podcast.

This conversation has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.

Tell me about your professional background and your involvement in the community organizations you've worked with.

“I have been an accountant for over 41 years. I have been a minister for over 20-some years now, and so I'm very active in the community. I am part of the Martin County Democratic Party organization, on a brief suspension right now for campaigning. I serve as the treasurer on that committee. In past years, I have been part of the NAACP, the Martin County Community Action board, and I ran for mayor a couple of years ago.”

What made you decide to run for state House this year?

“Our district has been at the bottom on every list for quite some time now, and so I feel like someone needs to jump in and try and see if we can pull things back up to par. Martin County is operating without a hospital, and I think that has been put on the back burner. We're losing lives, having to travel far distances just to get Medicare and healthcare.”

The district includes three of the lower-wealth counties in eastern North Carolina. What do you think the legislature needs to do to help improve the local economy in your area of the state?

“First of all, we’ve got to get a budget. I think that there is money there. There has been money over the past years that has been allotted. It just has not been sent to our area.”

Your primary got a lot of attention outside the district because the incumbent was known for occasionally voting with Republicans on veto overrides. I’m curious if that was something that you brought up in your campaign for this seat.

“Yes, I feel like he was not a team player, and I also feel like he was deceiving the people by running as a Democrat and then switching over and voting with the Republicans.”

He was the only Democrat who voted with Republicans on allowing some private school employees to carry concealed guns on campus. Is that something that came up in your campaign at all?

“I'm very concerned about our school system in the state of North Carolina, period. We're at the bottom. And I really feel like if we don't do something quickly, then we won't have a public school system. He just voted to put guns into the school systems, and so where does that leave the safety of our children? What if one of those children get their hands on the gun? What if one of those (school) volunteers that doesn't have anything to lose comes in a rage?”

Another bill Willingham supported was backed by Duke Energy to remove some of the carbon reduction targets that the state had. Is that something that you would have been opposed to?

“I really don't agree with the way that Duke is handling things right now. Let me just put it this way: I agree with economic development, but I agree with good economic development. I don't agree with things that are going to cause a health hazard. I don't agree with things that are going to be price gouging that's going to cost us more money.”

Listen to the full conversation with Smith on the WUNC Politics Podcast.

https://www.wunc.org/politics/2026-03-13/accountant-patricia-smith-nc-house-democrat-shelly-willingham-primary

In 2023, Venus Williams wasn’t just hitting aces on the tennis court — she was co‑curating an art auction that raised over $5 million to preserve the childhood home of Nina Simone in Tryon, NC.

Simone, a legendary musician and civil rights icon, grew up in this small house, and now, thanks to the efforts of Williams and other collaborators like artist Adam Pendleton, the home has been restored. The funds raised are vital in keeping this piece of history intact for future generations.

But this effort is about more than just bricks and mortar. The project aims to preserve the cultural legacy of Nina Simone and ensure her impact on music and activism is never forgotten. Although the home hasn’t yet transformed into a full cultural hub, it’s a significant step toward turning it into a space that celebrates African American history for years to come.

This isn’t just charity — it’s about amplifying a voice that changed the world and honoring her legacy in a meaningful, lasting way.

🤼‍♂️🏆 March 14, 2012 Mike Williams won the NCAA Division II National Wrestling Championship in the 165-pound weight class.
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The victory marked a historic milestone for the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Williams became UNC Pembroke’s first national champion in wrestling, and his title represented the university’s first national championship in any sport since 1982. His achievement placed both himself and the Braves wrestling program into the history books of North Carolina athletics.
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Brother Williams was also serving as the Basileus of the Chi Mu Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity on the UNCP campus at that time, balancing leadership, academics, and elite athletic performance while representing his fraternity and university with distinction. 💜💛
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Williams was born in Plainfield, NJ, but his story soon became closely tied to North Carolina. His family later moved to Sanford, NC, where he attended high school at Southern Lee High School and wrestled for coach Mike Short. It was there that Williams began building the foundation for the championship career that would eventually bring national recognition to UNC Pembroke.
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At Southern Lee High School, Williams established himself as one of the most dominant wrestlers in the state. He was a two-time all-state and all-conference performer for the Cavaliers, consistently proving himself against top competition throughout North Carolina.
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During his high school career, Williams compiled an incredible 136–8 overall record, demonstrating both consistency and dominance on the mat. As a senior, he recorded a remarkable 45–2 record, earning team MVP honors and leading his team with both leadership and skill.
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He was also named conference MVP for the second consecutive year, helping guide Southern Lee to the conference championship for the second straight season. His performances made him one of the most respected wrestlers in the region and a key figure in the program’s success.
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Williams also helped lead the Cavaliers to their second-straight appearance in the state tournament, further cementing Southern Lee’s reputation as a competitive wrestling program.
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Perhaps one of the most impressive accomplishments of his high school career came during his junior season, when Williams reeled off a perfect 48–0 record on his way to winning the state championship. A flawless season like that is rare in wrestling and highlighted the elite level at which he was competing. 🥇
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His outstanding performance on the mat earned him recognition at the national level as well. Williams was named to the National High School Coaches All-American team, an honor reserved for the top high school wrestlers in the country.
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His later NCAA championship victory at UNC Pembroke represented the culmination of years of dedication, discipline, and hard work—while also inspiring future Braves wrestlers and athletes across North Carolina.
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In this March 12, 1978 image, Sergeant Edward Haynes of the Wilmington Police Department sports a confident grin for the camera.

In 1943, the local chapter of the NAACP petitioned the Wilmington city council to hire African-American police officers. In 1954, Haynes was hired as one of the first Black-American police officers of the 20th century.

Sgt. Clarence Fredlaw is credited as saying of Haynes, "He had a unique calmness about him. He never got upset or mad or cursed and was able to turn a bad situation into a good one" and that he could be relied upon in any situation.

In addition to walking a beat, Haynes trained many new police officers as well, instilling the same values and earning the respect of his colleagues and the community. Simply put, "Mr. Haynes became the standard for others to pattern themselves after," according to an article in Port City Daily.

After thirty years of meritorious service on the force, Haynes retired in 1984 and passed away in 2014 at the age of 92.

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New Hanover County NAACP City of Wilmington, NC Government Wilmington, NC Police Department NC Culture Salt Magazine North Carolina Law Enforcement Officers The Lower Cape Fear Historical Society at the Latimer House Old Wilmington and Eastern NC Pictures and Postcards