Athlete – Thoroughbred Racing Mr. Oliver Lewis made his indelible mark on the worldwide sports culture by winning the first-ever Kentucky Derby on May 17, 1875, at the Louisville Jockey Club racetrack, now known as Churchill Downs. Born in Woodford County in 1856 to parents Goodson and Eleanor Lewis, he was one of 13 black […]
Coach – Football Columbus, GA, native Dr. Norman Passmore, Sr., coached the Original Dunbar Bearcats Football Team from 1951-1967. He was also an assistant coach on Dunbar’s historic basketball team during that time. As Dunbar’s football coach, Dr. Passmore led the Bearcats to a 98-16 record, along with six ties, giving him a stellar winning […]
Contributor – Basketball Melvin Boyd Cunningham was the son of Grace Bell Lindsay and Carl Boyd Cunningham, and grew up in the Charlotte Court neighborhood. The original Dunbar High School graduate had three siblings, Madeline, Donald Lee, and Carl Lee Cunningham, of which Donald Lee is the only survivor and now lives in Brooklyn, NY. […]
Athlete – Basketball Lexington native Melvin Turpin made a name for himself on the competitive courts of Bryan Station High School and the Douglass Park Dirt Bowl. A latecomer to the game of basketball, the gangly 6’11” teenager quickly developed into one of the top high school prospects in the country. Son of the late […]
Contributor Born May 17, 1939 to parents Elizabeth Wilson Ford and John Stout, Cynthiana, KY, native Louis Stout rose to the top in every sports and leadership endeavor he pursued. A three-time All-State basketball player, Mr. Stout totaled 1,922 career points for the Cynthiana High School Bulldogs, averaging 31 points and 24 rebounds a game […]
Athlete – Baseball Lou Johnson, also known as “Sweet Lou,” was the first African-American baseball player from Lexington to play in the major leagues. Born in 1934 to parents Sidney Bell and Shirley Johnson, Mr. Johnson is best known for hitting one of the more memorable home runs in Major League Baseball history. The left […]
Athlete – Basketball Leslie Nichols Carter was born and raised in Lexington, KY by the late Harvey and Mae Nichols. She is the second oldest of five siblings: Sandy, Harvetta, Shell, Gwendolyn, and Dylan. When Leslie was only 10, she tagged along with her older sister, Sandy, to the park’s basketball court. It was the […]
Athlete – Basketball Leroy Byrd, III, was born to Leroy Byrd, Jr., and Lois Byrd on February 11, 1963, in Lexington, Ky. He spent most of his younger years playing every sport imaginable with the neighborhood kids on Ohio Street in Lexington’s East End. While he was an outstanding baseball player in Lexington’s Parks and […]
Athlete – Basketball Julius Steele Berry was born July 18, 1939 in Lexington, Ky., to Edward and Clara M. Spencer Berry. One of 15 siblings, Julius first made his mark as an outstanding basketball player at the original Dunbar High School in the 1950s under the tutelage of the iconic Coach S.T. Roach. Widely known […]
Contributor – Baseball Mrs. Juanita Drake, 93, is a native of Lexington, Kentucky. She was born (in the home) and raised in the East End Neighborhood. She is the youngest and last living of a family of twelve children. Blessed to be the matriarch of presently four generations, Mrs. Drake is a former school crossing […]
