Black History Knowledge — November 11

What happened on this day. These are the November 11 moments in Black history worth knowing, remembering, and passing on.

1831 — Nat Turner is hanged in Jerusalem, Virginia

On November 11, 1831, Nat Turner, an enslaved preacher who led the August 1831 rebellion in Southampton County, Virginia, was hanged in Jerusalem, Virginia, after a rushed trial. More than 50 white people had been killed in the revolt. At least 18 other Black people were executed for it, and white mobs killed hundreds of Black people who had no part in it. At least nine states then passed laws limiting Black people’s movement, worship and assembly, and some barred teaching them to read or write.

1890 — D. McCree patents a portable fire escape

On November 11, 1890, the U.S. Patent Office granted patent No. 440,322 to Daniel McCree of Chicago for a portable fire escape. The wooden device rolled on wheels and had a carriage that could be raised or lowered, and it was meant to be stored inside a building. McCree is listed among 19th-century Black inventors.

1918 — Private Wayne Miner is killed in the last hours of World War I

On November 11, 1918, Private Wayne Miner of the 366th Infantry, in the all-Black 92nd Division, was killed in France in the last hours of World War I. The son of formerly enslaved parents and a former Iowa coal miner, he had volunteered to carry ammunition to an outpost when no one else would step forward. Kansas City’s American Legion Wayne Miner Post 149 was formed in his honor the next year, and he is buried at the St. Mihiel American Cemetery.

1984 — The Three Servicemen statue is unveiled at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial

On November 11, 1984, Veterans Day, Frederick Hart’s bronze statue The Three Servicemen was dedicated at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., with President Ronald Reagan taking part. The statue shows three young servicemen in battle dress, and one of them is a Black serviceman, standing with a white and a Hispanic serviceman.