Doris Miller wearing his Navy Cross in May 1942, National Archive
Modern Times Lecture Series
Doris Miller
Stephen Sloan, Ph.D.
SUnday, March 29, 2026 | 2:30pm - 4:00pm
**Doors at 2:00pm; Lecture at 2:30PM
In Person and online!
TICKETS
$10 General Admission | $5 Student | $0 NCHM Member
Doris "Dorie" Miller (October 12, 1919 – November 24, 1943) was a U.S. Navy sailor who was the first black recipient of the Navy Cross and a nominee for the Medal of Honor. As a mess attendant second class aboard the battleship USS West Virginia, Miller helped carry wounded sailors to safety during the attack on Pearl Harbor. He then manned an anti-aircraft gun and, despite no prior training in gunnery, officially shot down one plane (according to Navy Department records), but Miller and other eyewitnesses claimed a range of four to six.
Author and professor Stephen Sloan, Ph.D. explores Doris Miller’s story of personal bravery while shedding light on the racial barriers within the U.S. military at the time and the broader struggle for civil rights that followed.
To attend online, register and receive the Zoom meeting link by email ahead of the lecture. Free parking is available in the lot behind the Museum for in person attendees.
About the Speaker
Stephen Sloan, Ph.D.
Stephen Sloan received his Ph.D. from Arizona State University in the United States Post-1945, Public History, and the American West. He worked as the co-director of the Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage at the University of Southern Mississippi before returning to Baylor in 2007 as a professor in the Department of History and the Director of the Institute for Oral History.
Active in local history organizations, and a past president of Historic Waco and the Heart of Texas Regional History Fair, Dr. Sloan created Waco History, a website and free mobile app on local history, and its spinoff project, the Waco History Podcast. In the community of oral historians, he is the Executive Director of the national Oral History Association, a member of the American Council for Learned Societies. In 2024, Dr. Sloan was recognized as the Cornelia Marschall Smith Professor of the Year by Baylor University and was named a Big XII Faculty of the Year.
Sponsors
Become a sponsor for this event? Contact Cristina Feldott at (512) 478-2335 or cfeldott@nchmuseum.org.