Heroes and Heroines

  • 3 Min Read

Alhaji Ahmadu Wurie (August 27, 1898-June 13, 1977) was one of Sierra Leone’s foremost educators in the 20th century. An active politician, he was appointed...

  • 6 Min Read

Ernest Jenner Wright (1892 – December 29, 1955) was one of the most distinguished members of the British Colonial Medical Service, and one of the...

  • 3 Min Read

William Hughes (18?-1898) was the first African to be appointed as assistant district commissioner when the interior of Sierra Leone was declared a British Protectorate...

  • 2 Min Read

Togbi (Amega) Wenya, who lived during the 17th century, led the great Ewe migration from Notsie (Nouatja) in what is now Togo into what is...

  • 5 Min Read

Hendrick Vroom (May 20, 1850-January 1902) was one of the outstanding civil servants and diplomats serving the Gold Coast government in its earlier years. After...

  • 7 Min Read

William Bedford Van Lare (September 7, 1904-September 3, 1969) was a prominent member of the Ghana (formerly Gold Coast) judiciary in the years immediately before...

  • 4 Min Read

John van der Puije (March 18, 1848-September 12, 1925) was an Accra merchant, divisional chief, member of the Gold Coast Legislative Council from 1894-1904. He...

  • 6 Min Read

Uthman Abu Bakr Diqna “‘Uthman Digna” (c.1840-1926) was one of the ‘Amils (Provincial Governors) of the Mahdist State in the Sudan (1885-1898).   His ancestors were...

  • 7 Min Read

Augustus William Kojo Thompson (1880-February 26, 1950), generally known as Kojo Thompson, was a lawyer, a radical nationalist politician, and a pan-Africanist. An outstanding critic...

  • 5 Min Read

Thomas George Lawson (circa 1814-June 1891) was a chief’s son who became the first official interpreter and messenger operating between the colonial administration and the...

Editor’s Note

This website features a collection of articles largely from previously published volumes of the Encyclopaedia Africana, specifically the Encyclopaedia Africana Dictionary of African Biography, which highlights notable individuals from various regions of Africa. Please note that in these volumes, some names of people, towns, and countries were spelled differently than they are today. We have retained these historical spellings to preserve the integrity of the original publications. In some instances, the current spellings are also provided for easy reference.
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