U.S. Census Bureau Black History Month Feature for Feb. 20

WASHINGTON, Feb. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily Black History Month feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090226/CENSUSLOGO)

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20: DAVID CROSTHWAIT

Profile America for the 20th day of Black History Month. When not many African-Americans did so, David Crosthwait had earned bachelor and masters degrees in engineering by 1920. He held 39 patents for heating systems, vacuum pumps and temperature regulating systems. His most famous job was designing the heating system for Radio City Music Hall and Rockefeller Center in New York City. David Crosthwait was the first black to become a fellow of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers. There are close to 300,000 mechanical engineers in the U.S., just over 4 percent of them African-American. This special edition of Profile America is a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau, conducting the 2010 Census beginning April 1st.

Sources: www.biography.com

Statistical Abstract of the United States 2009, t. 596

Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look under the "Newsroom" button).

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau