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Deaths on February 24

Joseph Jenkins Roberts
1876Feb, 24

Joseph Jenkins Roberts

Joseph Jenkins Roberts, American-Liberian politician, 1st President of Liberia (b. 1809)
Joseph Jenkins Roberts (March 15, 1809 – February 24, 1876) was an African-American merchant who emigrated to Liberia in 1829, where he became a politician. Elected as the first (1848–1856) and seventh (1872–1876) President of Liberia after independence, he was the first man of African descent to govern the country, serving previously as governor from 1841 to 1848. Born free in Norfolk, Virginia, Roberts emigrated as a young man with his mother, siblings, wife, and child to the young West African colony. He opened a trading firm in Monrovia and later engaged in politics.

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Events on 1876

  • 2Feb

    Major League Baseball

    The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs of Major League Baseball is formed.
  • 10Mar

    Alexander Graham Bell

    The first successful test of a telephone is made by Alexander Graham Bell.
  • 22Apr

    MLB

    The first game in the history of the National League was played at the Jefferson Street Grounds in Philadelphia. This game is often pointed to as the beginning of the MLB.
  • 4Jun

    First Transcontinental Railroad

    An express train called the Transcontinental Express arrives in San Francisco, via the First Transcontinental Railroad only 83 hours and 39 minutes after leaving New York City.
  • 25Nov

    Battle of the Little Bighorn

    American Indian Wars: In retaliation for the American defeat at the Battle of the Little Bighorn, United States Army troops sack the sleeping village of Cheyenne Chief Dull Knife at the headwaters of the Powder River.