Where did the idea come from? Who began this dedication?

Black History Month originated in 1926 by Carter Godwin Woodson when it was originally called Negro History Week. The month of February was selected in respect to Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln who were both born this month.

Carter G. Woodson was the son of a slave and was born in 1875. He began high school at the age of 20 and then proceeded to study at Berea College, the University of Chicago, the Sorbonne, and Harvard University, where he earned a Ph.D. in 1912.

Woodson founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915 to train Black historians and to collect, preserve, and publish documents on Black life and Black people. He also founded the Journal of Negro History (1916), Associated Publishers (1922), and the Negro Bulletin (1937). Woodson spent his life working to educate all people about the enormous contributions made by Black men and women throughout history. Mr. Woodson died on April 3, 1950 and Black History Month has become his legacy.