-
-
In Dred Scott v. Sandford, the Supreme Court upholds slavery. This decision is regarded as a key cause of the American Civil War.
-
1861-1865
-
The Emancipation Proclamation goes into effect.The Emancipation Proclamation was issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, as the country entered the third year of the Civil War. It declared that "all persons held as slaves … shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free"
-
In the Slaughter-House Cases the Supreme Court votes 5–4 for a narrow reading of the Fourteenth Amendment. The court also discusses dual citizenship: State citizens and U.S. citizens.
Easter, the Colfax Massacre – More than 100 blacks in the Red River area of Louisiana are killed when attacked by white militia after defending Republicans in local office – continuing controversy from gubernatorial election -
Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is published, featuring the admirable African-American character Jim.
-
The State Normal School for Colored Students, which would become Florida A&M University, is founded.
-
In Plessy v. Ferguson, the Supreme Court upholds de jure racial segregation of "separate but equal" facilities.
-
First meeting of the Niagara Movement, an interracial group to work for civil rights.
-
-Orlando's first black doctor opens practice.
-Viola Pettus, an African-American nurse in Marathon, Texas, wins attention for her courageous care of victims of the Spanish Influenza, including members of the Ku Klux Klan. -
-Negro National League (1920–1931) established.
-Fritz Pollard and Bobby Marshall are the first two African-American players in the National Football League (NFL).
-Pollard goes on to become the first African-American coach in the NFL. -
Rosewood massacre: Six African Americans and two whites die in a week of violence when a white woman in Rosewood, Florida, claims she was beaten and raped by a black man
