Black History in Iowa: Historic African American Leaders Who Helped Shape The State

Before Iowa State played in a stadium named after Jack Trice and before Des Moines activists forced Katz Drug Store to serve Black customers, African Americans in Iowa were already rewriting what seemed impossible in a state that rarely saw them as equals.

Iowa is not usually the first place you think of when you imagine Black history and is rarely associated with it. When you may think of Iowa, you may imagine cornfields or maybe just a flyover state. However, the state has produced activists, scientists, and athletes who have helped to shape the national fight for Civil Rights. 

In honor of Black History Month, I wanted to share some inspirational and influential African Americans who have challenged racism and expanded opportunities for the better in the state and the nation. Obviously, we (should) know the legacies and stories of the great Martin Luther King Jr. and his “I Have A Dream” speech, Rosa Parks and her Montgomery Bus Boycott, Barack Obama being the first African American president, and Jackie Robinson being the first African American Baseball player. It was just recently MLK day, as well as Rosa Parks’ birthday. However, there are SO many more stories and people that are sometimes forgotten in history or not talked about enough. 

I wanted to feature some of the greatest African Americans who have connections with Iowa, either being associated or having Iowa roots. These include Frederick “Duke” Slater, George Washington Carver, Alexander Clark Sr., Edna Griffin, and Jack Trice, who have all challenged racism and expanded opportunity across the Midwest. These men and women set the bar for what was to come in the African American community, especially in a place like Iowa, where only about 4 percent of the population is African American in the latest Census. 

Frederick “Duke” Slater was born on December 9, 1898, in Normal, Illinois. He grew up in Clinton, Iowa, and later attended the University of Iowa from 1918 21. He earned first-team All-American honors while playing at Iowa, becoming the first Black athlete to achieve this in Hawkeye history. Slater eventually became the first Black lineman to play in the NFL’s history, and despite the heavy racism and segregation, went on to play for seven seasons. 

While Slater was playing in the NFL as a two-way Lineman, he was also working to earn his law degree. After his NFL career wrapped up, he became a lawyer and later became the first Black judge to serve on the Superior Court of Chicago. Slater was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020, and the Iowa Hawkeyes have named the field in honor of him, becoming “Duke Slater Field” in 2021 with his #15 up in the Iowa Hawkeye Wall of Honor. His success in sports and law proved that Black Americans could break barriers in areas that once sought to exclude them. 

You may have heard of George Washington Carver before, who was born January 1, 1864, in Diamond Grove, Missouri. Carver was rarely allowed in white classrooms. Black children were not allowed to attend public schools in Diamond Grove, so Carver’s education was a struggle. 

Eventually, Carver made it to Iowa State University (then Iowa State Agricultural College) and became the first to be a Black student, graduate student, and faculty. His academic achievements were credited to a teacher at Simpson College in Indianola who recognized Carver’s talents and encouraged him to pursue his dreams, even though it all seemed so impossible considering the circumstances.

He went on to develop numerous products and revolutionized agriculture, helping poor farmers survive and showing how science like his could improve people’s daily lives. He ended up at the Alabama Tuskegee Institute, where he spent the rest of his career with his legacy in science living to this day. Iowa State University built “Carver Hall” in 1966 in honor of Carver, who was a student and instructor in the 1800s. 

Johnny Bright was born on June 11, 1930, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Bright found his way to Drake University, passing over playing for Michigan State and instead making his way to Des Moines, Iowa. He amassed over 5,900 offensive yards in his three-year career at Drake and was destined for the Heisman trophy in the 1951 season, until “The Incident” happened in Oklahoma. 

Early into the game, an Oklahoma State (then Oklahoma A&M College) defensive player charged Bright, who didn’t even have the ball, and broke his jaw after hitting him in the face. Photographs from the incident caused outrage nationally and raised awareness for these issues for African American players in the sport. 

The images even earned The Des Moines Register a Pulitzer Prize in 1952. Drake went on to leave the MVC after they didn’t do anything about the incident and stayed quiet, and after the game, the NCAA mandated facemasks and created new rules against tackles and blocks, hoping to increase player safety across the league. The Philadelphia Eagles selected Bright 5th overall in the NFL draft; however, Bright chose to enter the Canadian Football League instead due to the likelihood of racism in the league that he would face. John Bright went on to be one of Canada’s greatest football players ever and was inducted into the CFL Hall of Fame in 1970. 

Alexander Clark Sr. is widely considered the father of Iowa Civil Rights. He was born February 25, 1826 in Washington, Pennsylvania. In 1842, at the age of 16, Clark moved and settled in Muscatine, Iowa (then known as Bloomington). After the Civil War ended in 1865, Clark fought to end school segregation in Iowa after his daughter was denied access to a white school. He sued the Muscatine school board in 1868 and won the case, almost a full century before the famous Brown v. Board of Education case, when the Supreme Court marked racial segregation in public schools as unconstitutional. This victory made Iowa one of the first states to ever legally integrate public schools in the U.S. Clark went on to become the first Black graduate of the University of Iowa Law School and additionally worked as a newspaper editor, activist, and later a U.S. ambassador to Liberia.

Another icon you may have heard of is Edna Griffin, who is referred to as the “Rosa Parks of Iowa.” She was born in 1909 in Lexington, Kentucky. After graduating in 1947, Griffin moved to Des Moines, Iowa, with her husband. She became part of the progressive party and was a Civil Rights activist, challenging segregation years before Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Griffin led a successful campaign against segregation in 1948 in Des Moines after being refused service at a downtown Katz Drug Store because she was Black. She organized boycotts and used the Iowa Civil Rights Act of 1884 to eventually take it to court and win her case to ensure equal access to public spaces for African Americans such as herself. The victory became one of the earliest known uses of the Iowa Civil Rights laws. Her actions helped to lead and push Des Moines toward greater racial equality. She died in Des Moines.

The final storied Iowan is Jack Trice. Trice was born May 12, 1902, in Hiram, Ohio. He went on to attend Iowa State College, becoming the first Black athlete in school history. He famously wrote a letter to himself, promising to do his best before his first varsity game and to represent his race with honor.

“My thoughts just before the first real college game of my life. The honor of my race, family, and self are at stake. Everyone is expecting me to do big things. I will! My whole body and soul are to be thrown recklessly about on the field tomorrow. Every time the ball is snapped I will be trying to do more than my part.”

 In 1923, Trice was severely injured in only his second college game, being targeted with brutal hits by the opposing team. He tragically died two days later in Ames at the age of 21, but his death helped to uncover and reveal the racism and incidents that Black athletes faced, and for decades, students helped fight in honor of him. In 1997, Iowa State named its field after him, becoming Jack Trice Stadium, making it the only major college stadium to be named after a Black athlete. 

These stories prove the Black history and excellence in Iowa that is part of the bigger picture in the United States. Long before Iowa was ready or willing to view African Americans as equals or part of society, these men and women demanded that it become better.

These are just a few of the amazing stories of African American people in Iowa’s history. There are so many other great people who pushed for more in the African American community, not only in Iowa, but the whole nation and world. This Black History Month, be sure to study up on some of these great legacies that still live on to this day and learn about the Black excellence that these legends have shown.