On this day in black history: Aretha Franklin records ‘Respect,’ Morehouse College established, and more

1760 — Richard Allen, founder of first national black church, is born
Richard Allen was born into slavery in 1760 but would eventually buy his freedom and move north. He converted to Methodism but grew tired of the treatment of black parishioners. He founded the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the first national African-American church, in 1816.

1867 — Augusta Institute, now known as Morehouse College, founded in Augusta, Georgia
William J. White and former slave Richard C. Coulter founded the Augusta Institute in Augusta, Georgia. In 1879, the school was moved to Atlanta and its name was changed to Morehouse College, after Henry L. Morehouse, the corresponding secretary of the American Baptist Home Mission Society.

1936 — National Negro Congress organized
The inaugural meeting was held in Chicago and attended by 817 delegates representing more than 500 organizations.

1946 — Happy birthday, Gregory Hines (1946-2003)
Theater, film and television actor Gregory Hines won a Tony Award as best actor in a musical in 1992 for his portrayal of Jelly Roll Morton, the pioneering jazz composer. Hines had roles in films such as Waiting to Exhale, Francis Ford Coppola’s Cotton Club and White Nights, as well as his sitcom, The Gregory Hines Show, on CBS from 1997 to 1998. He was also a recurring character on NBC’s Will & Grace and ABC’s Lost at Home.

1967 — Aretha Franklin records ‘Respect’
Fifty years ago today, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, recorded her iconic song, “Respect,” in Atlantic Records’ New York studio. This Otis Redding cover became the influential soul singer’s first No. 1 hit, providing a soundtrack for the civil rights movement and proving to be an important piece of music for women who were seeking the same type of regard as men.