Ore Green: West Africa’s First Female Pharmacist
Ore Green worked in London, before returning in 1917 to Lagos where she first worked as a Midwife at the hospital of Dr. Richard Akinwande Savage (1874-1935).
25 Interesting Facts About Martin Luther King Jr
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom (the highest civilian award of the United States of America) to Martin Luther King.
Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi: Did the General deserve to die?
Ironsi's proclamation of Decree 34 on May 24, 1966, marked the beginning of the end for him. The decree strengthened the centre, thereby removing the powers granted to the regions.
21 Interesting Facts About Shehu Shagari
Shehu Shagari was the 6th child of his father, 6th Head-of-State of Nigeria, and also had 6 federal government appointments before he became President.
Samuel Adegboyega: Pioneer of Apostolic Pentecostalism in Nigeria
Samuel Adegboyega was named Gbadebo after Oba Gbadebo I, the sixth Alake of Egbaland, Abeokuta, as he was from a royal house himself.
Mansa Musa: The Financial Recklessness of the Richest Man in History
Mansa Musa amassed so much wealth that he has been described by historians as the richest man in history...
Bashorun Gaa: The “Wicked Prime Minister” of the Old Oyo Empire
It was impossible for Bashorun Gaa to become an Alaafin of the Oyo Empire as the Prime Minister bore no blood of Oranmiyan to claim the throne...
Isaac Adaka Boro (1938-1968): Nigeria’s First Secessionist
Before Emeka Ojukwu declared the Republic of Biafra in May 1967, Isaac Adaka Boro had declared the Niger Delta Republic in February 1966.
Ernest Shonekan (1936-2022): A Child of Circumstance
At around 3:30 p.m. on August 26, 1993, Ernest Shonekan was sworn in as Nigeria’s new Head of State by Chief Justice Mohammed Bello.
Ahebi Ugbabe: The Only Female King of Colonial Nigeria
Ahebi Ugbabe has been described succinctly by Nwando Achebe in her book, The Female King of Colonial Nigeria: Ahebi Ugbabe, published in 2011...
How Bola Ige, Funsho Williams were assassinated in the early 2000s
While Bola Ige was shot and killed in Ibadan, Funsho Williams was stabbed and strangled to death at his home in Lagos.
The Tragic Story of Hadiza Oboh, Nigeria Airways’ First Female Pilot
Hadiza Oboh was the first and only female pilot of the defunct Nigeria Airways in the 1990s. She was an amazon in, not only, the Nigerian aviation industry but the world at large.
40 Interesting Facts about Ibadan
Ibadan was founded by the Yoruba people in 1750. It became a Yoruba military headquarters in 1829 and came under British rule in 1893...
Samuel Ladoke Akintola: 13th Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland and Last Premier of the...
Samuel Ladoke Akintola was responsible for the establishment of the University of Ife in 1962 and the creation of the Cocoa House in 1965.
Flora Nwapa: Mother of Modern African Literature
Flora Nwapa (1931–1993), was the first African woman to publish a novel in the English language in 1966.
Herbert Macaulay: 17 Interesting Facts About the Man on the One Naira Note &...
On December 5, 1893, Herbert Macaulay became the first Nigerian to qualify as a civil engineer and a member of the British Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE).
How Alhassan Dantata became West Africa’s Richest Man in the 1950s
As of the time of his death in 1955, Alhaji Alhassan Dantata was the richest man in all of West Africa...
How Mobolaji Johnson built Lagos with £10,000
Mobolaji Johnson was only 31 years old when he was appointed as the first military governor of Lagos State in May 1967.
Adegoke Adelabu: The Unforgettable Peculiar Penkelemesi
Adegoke Adelabu is often mentioned in Yorùbá and Nigerian history as the author of "penkelemesi", a Yorubanisation of the phrase, "peculiar mess".
How Dele Giwa was Bombed to Death in 1986
Dele Giwa kept moaning the refrain, “They have got me.” Who he referred to as “they” still remains a riddle to this day.
How Olusegun Obasanjo saved Nigeria’s democracy in 1999
On his ascension to the presidency in 1999, Olusegun Obasanjo was already thinking about his second term in 2003, which was four years away...
Kenneth Onwuka Dike (1917-1983): The Pioneer Historian
Professor Kenneth Onwuka Dike was the first Nigerian Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan and the roaming Ambassador of Biafra to Côte d'Ivoire...
