Following World War II, attendance at sporting events skyrocketed. One of the era's most noted athletes was Jackie Robinson, who became the first African American to play major league baseball. But blacks also integrated other sports as well. Examine the photographs below. What evidence do the photos of Jackie Robinson, from Jackie Robinson and Other Baseball Highlights, 1860s-1960s, provide of Robinson's fame? What hints does the photo of Althea Gibson, from Creative Americans: Portraits by Van Vechten, 1932-1964, provide to the sport she played?
Click on each photo to view a larger image. Learn more about Jackie Robinson by viewing Baseball, the Color Line, and Jackie Robinson, 1860s-1960s. Find out more about the efforts of African Americans to achieve equal rights by viewing African American Odyssey: The Civil Rights Era. Use your browser's Back Button to return to this point.