About

There are more notable African Americans with Kentucky roots and ties than any one person knows about. Very little has been written about many of them and it is a challenge to find what was written in the past. For some, their stories have only been told by word of mouth. The Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (NKAA) has been developed as a finding aid to bring together a brief description of pertinent names, places, and events, and to list the sources where additional information may be found. This is not currently an all inclusive database, but we are working toward that goal and suggestions are welcomed.

Recently Updated/Added

Stevenson, William Hafford

Stevenson was the founder and president of the Stevenson-Gregory Co-operative Fire Insurance Company in Lexington, KY. He was married to Mary E.…

Stepp, Marcellus "Marc"

Marcellus Stepp was an African American leader in the United Auto Workers (UAW). He was born in Versailles, KY, the son of Ulysses Grant Stepp and…

Mobley, Melody S.

Melody Mobley was born in Louisville, KY. In 1979, she was the first African American woman to graduate in forestry management from the University of…

Sheffield, Arthur A., Jr.

In 1973, Arthur Sheffield, Jr. becamethe first African American fireman in Covington, KY.

Freetown, Kentucky

Located on the Kentucky-Tennessee border around 1846, Freetown became the first African American community in Monroe County, KY. The community members…

Givens, Reuben W., and Ruth Newby Givens Roper

Lexington, KY-natives Reuben Givens and Ruth Roper were the parents of actress Robin Givens, former wife of heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson, and…

Wayman Institute

Founded in Harrodsburg, KY, by the Kentucky Conference of the A. M. E. Church, Wayman Institute was named after Bishop A. W. Wayman. It was an…

Brock, James Edward "Jack"

James Brock was the second head basketball coach at Lincoln William Grant High School (WGHS) in Covington, KY, coaching there from 1955 to 1965. Like…

Maysville Colored Library (Mason County, KY)

In 1911, there was a library established in Scott's M. E. Church in Maysville, KY. R. F. Broadus had placed the notice in the newspaper and was over…

Columbia (KY) Temperance Society

Columbia Temperance Society in Adair County, KY, was probably the first white temperance society in Kentucky to have an African American member. The…