Black History in Missouri
From the fight for civil rights to the roots of American music, Black history in Missouri is rich with individuals and events that have helped shape the nation.
Music
Missouri’s Black musicians were major contributors to the development of multiple musical genres.
Scott Joplin and John William “Blind” Boone were key in the creation of ragtime. Kansas City claims, “While New Orleans was the birthplace of jazz, America’s music grew up in Kansas City.”
Charlie “Bird” Parker was instrumental in developing bebop, a popular type of jazz. St. Louis has long been a center for the blues, the foundation of modern American music.
St. Louis native Chuck Berry made a name for himself as the “Father of Rock and Roll.”
Literature
Missouri-born authors earned literary acclaim for written works that shared the experience of being a Black person in America.
Langston Hughes, born in Joplin, was known as an early innovator in “jazz poetry” and a leader in the Harlem Renaissance.
St. Louis native Maya Angelou was a celebrated poet, memoirist and civil rights activist. Over the course of 50 years, she authored multiple autobiographies, essays, poetry, plays, and movie and television scripts.
Innovation
Black innovators created products and techniques that not only made life easier but helped advance society.
George Washington Carver, born near Diamond, was best known for developing hundreds of uses for peanuts, but he also revolutionized the field of agriculture through research and education.
Tom Bass, born and raised near Mexico, Missouri, was an acclaimed horse trainer known for his gentle way with horses. Bass broke the color barrier in the equestrian world and trained horses for Teddy Roosevelt, Buffalo Bill Cody and Will Rogers.
Entrepreneurship
Decades of segregation in Missouri spawned thriving Black business districts in cities across the state.
The areas included The Foot in Jefferson City, The Wedge in Hannibal, The Sharp End in Columbia, Vine Street in Kansas City and the Ville in St. Louis.
The districts served as a cornerstone of Black life and culture in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and were some of Missouri’s most prolific business communities of the time.
The Dred Scott decision. Mary Meachum’s Underground Railroad river crossing. Court cases calling for equal access to education and housing. President Truman’s order to desegregate the military. Missouri has played a significant role in the quest for racial equality since the early 1800s.
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