Drusilla Dunjee Houston

As we observe Black History Month, we must be honest, candid and frank with ourselves and admit we have much work to do to encourage our people to “Know Thyself.”

- Junious Ricardo Stanton

In 2024, we must face the fact we live in a society hellbent on suppressing our history and negating our contributions to the global human family. Thus, it is our responsibility. It falls on us to lead the initiative to educate our people. To do so, we must discover, honor, and pay homage to those stalwart Brothers and Sistahs who blazed the path toward self-knowledge and learning about the glories of Black people and our accomplishments.

One such person was Drusilla Dunjee Houston, a largely forgotten author, poet, musician, educator, researcher, historian, screenwriter, and activist who contributed mightily to the knowledge of Africa and African people.

Drusilla Dunjee Houston was born on January 20, 1876, in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, the daughter of Rev. John William Dunjee, a Baptist minister, educator, and church founder for the American Baptist Home Missionary Society, and his wife Lydia Taylor Dunjee.

The American Baptist Home Missionary Society was responsible for establishing churches in rural areas inhabited by Blacks in the South, Eastern seaboard, Northeast, and Midwest. It also contributed to founding twenty-seven colleges for newly freed Blacks following the War Between The States. Drusilla was born on the campus of Storer College, a Feedman school in Harpers Ferry.

Drusilla moved and traveled with her parents and demonstrated an early talent for writing, music, and learning. She taught herself French, German, Greek, Latin, and African history! She attended Northwestern Conservatory of Music in Minnesota. Although trained in classical music and Drusilla earned a decent living performing, she became one of the most prolific women writers in the country. She and her parents eventually settled in Oklahoma in 1892, where they made an indelible impact on the surrounding communities.