*                Today in Black History - January 31            *

1863 - The first African American Civil War regiment, the South 
	Carolina Volunteers, are mustered into the United States 
	Army. 

1865 - Congress abolishes slavery with the 13th Amendment to the
	Constitution.  The vote in the House is 121 to 24.

1914 - Arnold Raymond Cream is born in Merchantville, New Jersey.  
	He will become "Jersey Joe Walcott" and World Heavyweight
	Champion at the age of 37. After retiring from boxing, he
	will stay active in boxing as a referee and later will 
	become chairman of the New Jersey Athletic Commission. He
	will be elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame 
	in 1990. He will join the ancestors on February 25, 1994.

1919 - Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson, the first African American
	to break racial barriers in modern major league baseball, 
	is born in Cairo, Georgia. He will start playing baseball 
	in the Negro Leagues in preparation for a career as a 
	physical education coach. His major league baseball career 
	with the Brooklyn Dodgers will begin in 1947 and he will 
	play for nine years before leaving baseball to become a bank 
	official, land developer, and director of programs to 
	fight drug addiction.  Among his honors will be the NAACP's 
	Spingarn Medal in 1956. He will join the ancestors
	on October 24, 1972 in Stamford, Connecticut after succumbing 
	to complications of diabetes.

1920 - Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity is incorporated at Howard 
	University. 

1925 - Benjamin Hooks is born in Memphis, Tennessee.  He will 
	become a public defender and minister after graduating 
	from DePaul University Law School.  Through this work, he 
	will become a prominent leader in the civil rights 
	movement.  In 1965, he will become the first African 
	American criminal court judge in Tennessee.  He will also 
	become the first African American to become a commissioner 
	on the Federal Communications Commission. In 1977, he will 
	become the executive director of the NAACP. He will join the
	ancestors on April 15, 2010.

1928 - Harold "Chuck" Willis is born in Atlanta, Georgia.  He will 
	become a rhythm and blues singer and be best known for his 
	recording of "C.C. Rider" in 1957.  He will join the 
	ancestors in 1958 after succumbing to peritonitis.

1931 - Ernest "Ernie" Banks is born in Dallas, Texas.  He will 
	become the first African American baseball player to wear 
	a Chicago Cubs uniform (September 17, 1953).  Banks will 
	also be quick to say "Let's play two!"  Banks will be the 
	Cubs' outstanding shortstop from 1954 to 1960. In 1961 he 
	will be moved to left field, then to first base, where he 
	will spend the rest of his career.  In 1969, Ernie Banks 
	will be voted the Cub's best player ever by Chicago fans. 
	'Mr. Cub' will retire in 1971.  He will be elected to the 
	Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.

1934 - Etta Moten sings for President and Mrs. Franklin D. 
	Roosevelt at a White House dinner for family and friends.  
	Moten, a stage and screen star, sings songs from her role 
	in the movie "Golddiggers of 1933 and "Swing Low Sweet 
	Chariot."  It is the first time an African American 
	actress performs at the White House.

1962 - Lt. Commander Samuel L. Gravely assumes command of the 
	destroyer escort, USS Falgout.  The Navy reports that he 
	is the first African American to command a U.S. warship.

1963 - James Baldwin's influential collection of essays "The Fire 
	Next Time" is published.

1972 - Aretha Franklin sings "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" at 
	Mahalia Jackson's funeral.  Over 40,000 mourners view the 
	coffin.

1988 - Washington Redskins quarterback Doug Williams is named Most 
	Valuable Player for leading his team to a 42-10 win over 
	the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII.  He is the first 
	African	American quarterback to play in a Super Bowl game.

2006 - Coretta Scott King, widow of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 
	joins the ancestors after succumbing to complications of a 
	stroke and heart attack at the age of seventy eight.

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