In 1926 Carter G. Woodson, the "father of Black history”, set out to designate a week to celebrate and educate people about Black history and culture. Woodson chose February because it encompasses the birthdays of two Americans who played a significant role in Black American history, Abraham Lincoln, and Frederick Douglass. The goal for Woodson was to encourage the teaching of history of the Black American experience and the history of the African diaspora in public schools. It was an effort to make it a serious area of study within history. Fifty years after the first celebrations, President Gerald R. Ford officially recognized Black History Month during the country's 1976 bicentennial.
