For more than forty years, from 1931-1974, two sisters from Anne Arundel County, Elizabeth Carr Smith & Florence Carr Sparrow owned and operated Carr’s & Sparrow’s Beaches. These two sisters were the first African American females to operate such large business enterprises in Annapolis, Maryland.
On July 20, 1979, Marjorie Ann Jennings was the first African American female named to the Maryland Parole Commission.
In 1987, Debra Hardy-Cartwright, MD was the first African American female physician to open and operate her own private OB/GYN practice in Annapolis, Maryland.
In 1994, Mary Louise Sellman "Bunny" Jackson was the first African American woman elected to the Anne Arundel County, Maryland Orphans Court as an Associate Judge.
In 2011, the Rev. Dr. Carletta Allen was the first African American female appointed as the lead Pastor of the historic Asbury United Methodist Church, Annapolis Maryland.
In 2006, Danielle M. Mosley became the first African American female appointed to serve as an Associate Judge for the Seventh District Court in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.
In 2019, Shaneka Tarae Johnson Henson became the first African American Woman to represent the City of Annapolis in the Maryland General Assembly.