1001 People Who Made America - Alan Axelrod [10]
Billy the Kid (1859/60–1881) Born Henry McCarty (or possibly William H. Bonney, Jr.) in the slums of New York City, Billy the Kid became an outlaw during the range wars of New Mexico and earned, even during his brief life, a legendary reputation as a gunfighter, credited by many sources with having killed 27 men before Sheriff Pat Garrett killed him in his 21st year.
Birdseye, Clarence (1886–1956) Trained as a naturalist, Birdseye became a fur trader in Labrador, working there in 1912 and 1916. He observed that many Labradoreans froze food during the winter as a way of preserving it. This inspired him to experiment with quick-freezing method, and in 1924, he became a founder of General Seafoods Company, marketing his first quick-frozen foods in 1929. Almost single-handedly, Birdseye created the frozen food industry.
Bishop, Hazel (1906–1998) Bishop graduated from Barnard College in 1929, did graduate work at Columbia University, and became a chemist in a dermatologic laboratory and then for two oil companies. Experimenting at home, she created in 1949 a novel long-lasting lipstick, which she advertised as “kiss-proof.” This became the basis of Hazel Bishop, Inc., one of the best-known names in American cosmetics.
Black Hawk (1767–1838) Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak—Black Hawk—was chief of the so-called “British Band” of the Sauk and Fox tribe of Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa. His resistance to white settlement of Indian land ceded to the government by a fraudulent 1804 treaty triggered the Black Hawk War of 1832, which resulted in the massacre of many of his followers.
Black, Hugo (1886–1971) As associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1937 to 1971, Black championed the Bill of Rights as an absolute guarantee of civil liberties. Equally important was his argument that the Fourteenth Amendment extended the authority of the Bill of Rights to state governments as well as the federal government, neither of which was to be allowed to impinge upon individual freedom.
Blackmun, Harry A. (1908–1999) Associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1970 to 1994, Blackmun earned his greatest fame as a jurist when he wrote the majority decision in Roe v. Wade (1973), declaring that a woman’s right to abortion is guaranteed by the constitutional right to privacy. The decision unleashed decades of national controversy.
Blaine, James G. (1830–1893) Republican congressman and senator, Blaine was secretary of state under President James A. Garfield and, again, under Benjamin Harrison. In this post, he called for an inter-American conference to prevent wars in the Western Hemisphere. This became the Pan-American Conference, which Blaine chaired and which launched the Pan-American Movement—a set of alliances and reciprocity treaties between the United States and the countries of Latin-America.
Blake, Eubie (1883–1983) James Hubert “Eubie” Blake was born in Baltimore and earned fame as an African American ragtime composer and performer. His longtime partnership with lyricist-singer Noble Sissle began in 1915 and produced a series of musicals, including the 1921 Shuffle Along, generally regarded as the first American musical written, produced, and directed by blacks. His most famous song is “I’m Just Wild About Harry.”
Blackstone, Harry (1885–1965) Born Harry Bouton in Chicago, “The Great Blackstone” began his stage career as a teenage magician and became the most famous magician of his day, mentor to a generation of magicians.
Bloomer, Amelia (1818–1894) Bloomer was born Amelia Jenks in Homer, New York. In 1849, she began publishing The Lily: A Ladies Journal Devoted to Temperance and Literature, a newspaper for women believed the first to be edited entirely by a woman. By the early 1850s, Bloomer was among the best-known advocates of women’s rights, but also championed reform of women’s dress in the form of full-cut pantaloons under a short skirt. This article of clothing allowed greater freedom of movement. Originally