America is a mosaic of cultural contributions, and as February kicks off, we take note of Black History Month. How well-versed are you on significant persons, places and milestones relative to Mid-Atlantic Black American History? Here are 20 facts to test your knowledge. [Hint: No Googling.]
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New Jersey
1. Who was the first African American Grammy winner from New Jersey?
- A. Sarah Vaughan
- B. Count Basie
- C. Wayne Shorter
2. In what year was New Jersey the last Northern state to abolish slavery?
- A. 1832
- B. 1804
- C. 1865
3. What school district became the first in New Jersey to require African American studies as a mandatory course for high-schoolers to graduate?
- A. Cherry Hill
- B. Jersey City
- C. Tenafly
4. From what university did Marion Thompson Wright, born in East Orange and a longtime Montclair resident, receive her doctorate to become the first African American woman in the U.S. to earn a Ph.D. in history?
- A. Columbia University
- B. Howard University
- C. Rutgers University
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Delaware
1. Lisa Blunt Rochester became the first African American and first woman to represent Delaware in Congress when she was elected in 2016. Where did she grow up?
- A. Dover
- B. New Castle
- C. Wilmington
2. Richard Allen, born on a Delaware plantation in 1760, founded the first independent Black religious denomination in the United States. What is its name?
- A. The National Baptist Convention
- B. Church of God in Christ
- C. The African Methodist Episcopal Church
3. Who was the first Black person to settle in Delaware in 1638?
- A. Antoni Swart
- B. Anthony Swartz
- C. Anton Swar
4. What was the name of Canada’s first antislavery newspaper published by Wilmington native Mary Ann Shadd Cary?
- A. The Halifax Gazette
- B. The Provincial Freeman
- C. The Montréal Daily Advertiser
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New York
1. Who was the upstate New York native and first African American sculptor to achieve national and then international prominence?
- A. Augusta Savage
- B. Edmonia Lewis
- C. Elizabeth Catlett
2. Who was the first Black woman to set foot on the North Pole and on the South Pole?
- A. Viola Jones
- B. Dorothy Aranda
- C. Barbara Hillary
3. The oldest operating African American club in the United States is the Colored Musicians Club located in what New York city?
- A. Rochester
- B. Buffalo
- C. Albany
4. Which community established by freed Black slaves within New York City’s five boroughs no longer exists?
- A. Seneca Village
- B. Weeksville
- C. Sandy Ground
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Pennsylvania
1. What Pennsylvania native was the first African American woman to star in her own TV special?
- A. Ethel Waters
- B. Marian Anderson
- C. Lena Horne
2. What Pennsylvania cemetery is the oldest existing Black-owned one in the United States?
- A. Mount Zion Cemetery
- B. Garden Cemetery
- C. Eden Cemetery
3. What was the opening year for Fairview Park in Salem Township, the first and only Black-owned amusement park in Pennsylvania?
4. Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta holds this unique distinction after being elected to the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 2018?
- A. The first African American elected
- B. The youngest member elected
- C. The first LGBTQ-person of color elected
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Maryland
1. In what year did Baltimore native Thurgood Marshall become the first African American Justice to serve on the Supreme Court?
2. Who was the first African American female mayor in Maryland history?
- A. Adrienne Jones
- B. Sheila Dixon
- C. Lena King Lee
3. What Maryland city was the site of protests to end segregation in public places and of two race riots in the 1960s?
- A. Baltimore
- B. Cambridge
- C. Silver Spring
4. What Maryland native’s 200th birthday falls this year?
- A. Frederick Douglass
- B. Harriet Tubman
- C. Benjamin Banneker
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Black History Month Quiz Answers
New Jersey
1. B. Legendary jazzman William James “Count” Basie, a native of Red Bank, was the first N.J. African American Grammy winner in 1959. He won the music industry’s highest honor twice in its inaugural year for his album, “Basie (The Atomic Mr. Basie).”
2. B. The law passed in 1804 to end slavery delayed the practice in the Garden State until the last 16 enslaved Africans in the state were freed in 1866.
3. A. The Cherry Hill School District in Black History Month 2021 announced the mandatory African American history course as a requirement to graduate starting with the incoming class of 2025.
4. A. Wright earned her doctorate from Columbia University in 1940 after completing her dissertation, “The Education of Negroes in New Jersey.”
Delaware
1. C. Rochester grew up in Wilmington and is serving her third term in office in the U.S. House of Representatives.
2. C. Richard Allen founded the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia in 1794 and was elected the first bishop of the AME church in 1816.
3. A. Antoni Swart, also known as “Black Anthony,” was an enslaved man who arrived from the West Indies on the ship, The Vogel Grip, in 1638.
4. B. Mary Ann Shadd Cary was the first African American female publisher in North America when she published The Provincial Freeman in 1853.
New York
1. B. Edmonia Lewis, the daughter of Native American and Afro-Haitian parents born in Rensselaer County, achieved fame for her sculptures including “Forever Free,” in 1867 and “The Death of Cleopatra” in 1876.
2. C. Manhattan native Barbara Hillary in 2007 at the age of 75 became the first Black woman to set foot on the North Pole and on the South Pole in 2011.
3. B. Colored Musicians Club in Buffalo was founded in 1918 by African American musicians who were denied membership into the local chapter of the American Federation of Musicians.
4. A. Seneca Village was formed in the 1830s in the area that is now Central Park but was torn down in the 1850s to build the park.
Pennsylvania
1. A. Ethel Waters, born in Chester, became the first African American to star in her own TV special in 1939, first African American woman to be nominated for an Emmy in 1962, and second African American woman to nominated for an Academy Award in 1949.
2. C. Eden Cemetery, located in Collingdale, was founded in 1902 and is the final resting place of prominent figures such as renowned singer Marian Anderson and abolitionist William Still.
3. C. Fairview Park was created in 1945 as a place of leisure for African Americans who were restricted from entering white-owned amusement parks. It once boasted 155 acres with various carnival rides and a swimming pool, but is now a 55-acre site for private and public gatherings.
4. C. Philadelphia native Malcolm Kenyatta became the first LGBTQ-person of color elected to the Pennsylvania General Assembly and one of its youngest members in 2018.
Maryland
1. C. In 1967, Thurgood Marshall ascended to the Supreme Court where he served until his retirement in 1991.
2. B. Sheila Dixon was the first African American female mayor not only in Maryland history but also in Baltimore history when elected in 2007.
3. B. Cambridge was the site of numerous protests from 1961 to 1964 during the Civil Rights Movement and race riots in 1963 and 1967.
4. B. Abolitionist and activist Harriet Tubman was believed to be born in March 1822 in Dorchester County on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
Ricardo Kaulessar is a culture reporter for the USA TODAY Network’s Atlantic Region How We Live team. For unlimited access to the most important news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: kaulessar@northjersey.com
Twitter: @ricardokaul
