A Black History of Natural HistoryCarl CottonCarl W. Cotton was born in 1918 in Washington Park, a section of Chicago’s South Side that confined most of the African American...
A Black History of Natural HistorySophie LutterloughSophie Lutterlough began working at the Smithsonian as an elevator operator. In the course of her duties, she developed a rapport with...
A Black History of Natural HistoryMargaret S. CollinsDr. Margaret Collins (1922-1996) was a termite expert and field biologist. Graduating high school at fourteen years old, she continued...
A Black History of Natural HistoryBarry B. HamptonBarry B. Hampton began working at the Smithsonian in 1912 as a mail clerk. As he delivered the mail, he became enamored with the natural...
A Black History of Natural HistoryRobert GilbertVery little information exists about nature photographer and naturalist, Robert A. Gilbert. As is often the case with Black historical...
A Black History of Natural HistoryJohn WidgeonJohn Widgeon described himself as a “collector” for the Maryland Academy of Science, now the Maryland Science Center. Today he would...
A Black History of Natural HistorySolomon G. BrownImagine having to prove you were born free of involuntary servitude – and living with the possibility that freedom could be revoked at...
A Black History of Natural HistoryJohn EdmonstoneJohn Edmonstone was born into slavery in the late 18th century in British Guyana. Charles Waterton, a friend of the plantation owner,...
A Black History of Natural HistoryJohn TyleyJohn Tyley was an Antiguan artist who worked as a botanical illustrator in the late 1700s, but not much is known about his life. He was a...
A Black History of Natural HistoryGraman KwasiGraman Kwasi was a healer and collector with extensive botanical knowledge whose many accomplishments include descriptions of medicinal...
A Black History of Natural HistoryEdward BartarEdward Bartar was an Anglo-African man employed by the Royal African Company (RAC) in the 17th century. Some sources report he was a...
A Black History of Natural HistoryMajoeNatural history museums and the collections within them are tied to the transatlantic slave trade which means that there were many...