•The pageant was founded by Philadelphia businessman J. Morris Anderson, who started the contest after his daughters told him they wanted to be Miss America.
•The first pageant was held in Atlantic City, NJ, on Sept. 7, 1968, in the ballroom at the Ritz Carlton. It was the same date as the Miss American Pageant also being held in Atlantic City.
While the Miss America pageant was held earlier, the Miss Black America Pageant began at midnight. They hoped that when newsmen finished covering the Miss America pageant at the convention center, they might walk the four blocks to the Ritz Carlton afterward. Many did.
•Saundra Williams, a college student at Maryland State College, was the first Miss Black America.
•Oprah Winfrey was a contestant in the Miss Black America Pageant, representing Tennessee.
•The Jackson 5 made their first television appearance on the Miss Black America Pageant. The pageant has a long history of featuring Motown performers.
•1969 Curtis Mayfield composed, sang and recorded the first Miss Black America theme song with vocal assistance from his group, The Impressions. The song is still used today by the pageant.
•In 1977 NBC aired the pageant the day before the Miss American Pageant. The host that year was Billy D. Williams.
•Vanessa Williams was crowned the first Black Miss America in 1983.
•There was not a Miss Black America Pageant from 1997 to 2009, when the pageant experienced a rebirth.
