The celebration and study of black history originated with
Virginia native Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950), a writer, teacher
and historian. Woodson launched Negro History Week in 1926 to
bring national attention to the contributions of black people
throughout U.S. history. He chose the second week of February
because it has the birthdays of two men who influenced blacks,
Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. In the 1960s, the surge
of interest in black studies led to calls for more than a week
to study black history. In 1976, the Association for the Study
of African American Life and History in Washington, D.C., called
for a month-long celebration. And here we have it, all thanks to
Carter G. Woodson. Woodson, who spent most of his professional
life living in Washington, D.C., was listed as a mulatto in at
least one census record.1