Since 1851, The New York Times has published thousands of obituaries, capturing the lives and legacies of people who have influenced the world in which we live. But many important figures were left out.

Overlooked reveals the stories of some of those remarkable people. We started the series last year by focusing on women like Sylvia Plath, the postwar poet; Emma Gatewood, the hiking grandmother who captivated a nation; and Ana Mendieta, the Cuban artist whose work was bold, raw and sometimes violent. We added to that collection each week.

Our deep dive into The Times’ 168 years of coverage revealed that many other groups of people who left indelible marks on society weren’t noted in our obituary pages. This special selection of Overlooked obituaries highlights a prominent group of black men and women whose lives we did not examine at the time of their deaths.

Many of them were a generation removed from slavery. They often faced similar challenges, attempting to break the same barriers again and again. Often, they tried to skirt the confines society placed on their race, uprooting their lives to start anew elsewhere, or fibbing about their own upbringings as a way to gain respect. They were pioneers, shaping our world and creating a path for future generations. Some managed to achieve success in their lifetimes, only to die penniless, buried in pauper’s graves. Almost all of them reached deep within themselves to push back against harsh circumstances, the likes of which are unimaginable for many of us today.

Their exclusion from our obituary pages was just another symptom of the obstacles they faced at the time. By confronting the gaps in our historical coverage, we hope to finally give visibility to those who had been forgotten.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.