1801 - The African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Zion Church officially separated from its parent, the Methodist Episcopal Church. The Zion church was incorporated as the African Episcopal Church of the City of New York. James Varick was its first pastor and he later became the first black African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AMEZ) bishop. The first national conference was held in 1821.
1874 - Frederick Douglass is elected President of Freedman's Bank and Trust Company.
1904- James Bassett was born. He went on to become the first live actor hired by Walt Disney in the role of Uncle Remus.
1923 - Bessie Smith made her first recording for Columbia Records. The record, "Down Hearted Blues," written by Alberta Hunter and Lovie Austin. It sold 800,000 copies and was Columbia's first popular hit.
1944 - The U.S. Navy began its first officer training class of African Americans at Camp Robert Smalls, Great Lakes, Illinois.
1951 - James Ingram is born in Akron, Ohio. He will be raised there
on Kelly Avenue. He will later become a rhythm and blues singer and will earn at least three Grammy Awards and seventeen Grammy nominations.
1951 - The New York City Council passed a bill prohibiting racial discrimination in city-assisted housing developments.
1957 - LeVar Burton was born in Landstuhl, Germany. He is probably best known for his landmark role in the award-winning mini-series, "Roots," as the enslaved African youth Kunta Kinte, while attending USC. He later became a producer, director and writer for numerous television series and films.
1970 - Joe Frazier knocked outs Jimmy Ellis in the 5th round (out of 15)at Madison Square Garden to become the undisputed world heavyweight boxing champion.
1972 - Wilt Chamberlain scored his 30,000th point in his 940th game, a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns. He is the first player in the NBA to score 30,000 points.
1992 - The Los Angeles Lakers retire Magic Johnson's uniform, # 32.
1999 - Mary Elizabeth Roche, best known as Betty Roche, passed away at the age of 81 in Pleasantville, New Jersey. She was a singer who performed with Duke Ellington in the 1940s and 1950s. She sang with the Savoy Sultans from 1941 to 1943, when she joined Ellington's group. She scored high marks from critics for the suite "Black, Brown and Beige," at Ellington's first Carnegie Hall concert. She also performed Ellington's signature song "Take the A Train" in the 1943 film. "Reveille With Beverly."
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