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Jack Roosevelt Robinson born in Cairo, Georgia. January 31, 1919 |
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First “competitive” sport was soccer, played in the 4th grade. 1927 |
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Enters UCLA. First man to win letters in Football, Basketball,
Baseball and Soccer. Fall, 1939 |
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Leaves college under financial pressure. Spring ,1941 |
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Plays semi-pro with the Honolulu Bears, an integrated football team.
Fall, 1941 |
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Returns to California shortly before Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Dec, 1941 |
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Drafted into the Army. April, 1942 |
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Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant. January, 1943 |
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Arrest and court martial after refusing to sit at the back of an Army bus.
July, 1944 |
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Acquitted and honorably discharged from the Army. November, 1944 |
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Signs with Kansas City Monarchs, Negro League baseball team. 1945 |
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Plays minor league baseball for the Montreal Royals. October, 1945 |
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Marries Rachel Issum. February, 1946 |
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Opens the baseball season with the Brooklyn Dodgers as the first African American to play in the major leagues. April 15, 1947 |
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Named National League MVP. October, 1949 |
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Film Autobiography of Robinson, The Jackie Robinson Story, debuts. 1950 |
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Leads Dodgers to World Series title. October, 1955 |
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Retires with a career batting average of .311. Fall, 1956 |
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Receives an honorary degree with Martin Luther King at Howard University. June, 1957 |
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Spokesman and fundraiser for the NAACP. 1958 |
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Campaigns for Vice President Richard Nixon. 1960 |
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Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. January 1962 |
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Appointed Civil Rights Advisor to Governor Nelson Rockefeller of NY. 1966 |
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Jackie Robinson Construction Corporation founded to help provide housing for low and middle income blacks. 1970 |
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Jackie Robinson Jr. killed in auto accident. June, 1971 |
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Robinson’s number 42 retired by the Los Angeles Dodgers’. June, 1972 |
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Appears at World Series in Cincinnati; calls for a black manager in major league baseball. October 14, 1972 |
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Death. October 24, 1972 |
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Jackie Robinson Foundation established. 1973 |
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Robinson’s number 42 retired by all major league teams. April 1997 |
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First annual Jackie Robinson day for MLB. April 15, 2007 |
| Political Events Timeline |
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Army opens first integrated officer training schools. July 1941 |
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President Truman orders the integration of U.S. Military. July, 1948 |
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Brown v. Board of Education. May 17, 1954. |
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Rosa Parks is arrested in Montgomery Alabama for refusing to give up her seat on the bus to a white person. December 1, 1955 |
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James Meredith is barred from entering the University of Mississippi. September 20th, 1962 |
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Robinson joins Dr. King in nonviolent protest. Birmingham, AL. May 1963 |
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Dr. King delivers “I have a Dream” speech during a march on Washington. August 28, 1963 |
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Civil Rights Act. July 2, 1964 |
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Malcolm X is assassinated in New York. February 21, 1965 |
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Voting Rights Act. August 1965 |
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Loving v. Virginia. Supreme Court strikes down all laws banning inter-racial marriage. June 12, 1967 |
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Thurgood Marshall becomes first African-American to sit on the Supreme Court. June 13, 1967 |
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Martin Luther King, Jr. Assassinated in Memphis. April 4, 1968 |
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Second Civil Rights Act. April 11, 1968 |
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Swann v. Mecklenburg. Supreme Court upholds bussing to promote school integration. April, 1971 |
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Alabama governor George Wallace is shot while campaigning for president in Maryland. May 15, 1972 |
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Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. The Supreme Court upholds affirmative action in University admissions. June 28, 1978 |
