#OTD Former U.S. Senator Blanche Kelso Bruce was appointed registrar of the U.S. Treasury by President James Garfield.

#OTD The state of Rhode Island passed the first law in North America that put restrictions on slavery.

#OTD Hall of fame baseball player James "Cool Papa" Bell was born in Starkville, MS. Actor Jeffrey Anderson-Gunter narrates.

Congressman John Conyers, a 52 year member of the U.S. House of Representatives, was born in Highland Park, MI.

#OTD Politician Sharon Sayles Belton, the first female and first African American mayor of Minneapolis, was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

#OTD Chicago Cubs pitcher "Toothpick" Sam Jones threw a no-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the first African American to achieve the feat.

#OTD The Maria Baldwin Home, longtime residence of the first African American female school principal in the Northeast, was designated a National Historic Landmark.

#OTD The Apollo Theater in Harlem, NY installed a Walk of Fame to honor the legends who have graced the Apollo stage.

#OTD The U.S. Navy commissioned warship USS Rodney M. Davis named for the Medal of Honor recipient for his heroism in the Vietnam War.

#OTD Black owned newspaper The Chicago Defender began as a weekly publication.