Born on December 19,1875, Carter G.Woodson is considered the father of African American history.

Although he had little formal education as a child, Woodson became the second, after W.E.B. Dubois, in a long line of Harvard-educated black historians.

He co-founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History and was the founding editor of the authoritative Journal of Negro History.

In 1926, he called for the national observance of Negro History Week.

He wrote, 'If a race has no history, if it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world, and it stands in danger of being exterminated."

The second week of February was chosen to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass (February 12th and 14th).

In 1970, Negro History Week became Black History Week, and was expanded to Black History Month, in 1976.