Author and anthropologist, considered one of the pre-eminent African American writers of the 20th century

Best known for her 1937 novel Their Eyes Were Watching God; published four novels and over 50 short stories, plays and essays

Rediscovered by writer Alice Walker, who called her “a genius of the south”

Established a school of dramatic arts at Bethune-Cookman College in 1934

Served on the faculty at North Carolina College for Negroes, which became North Carolina Central University