Maya Angelou Timeline By lharlowe Apr 4, 1928 Maya Angelou was born Apr 4, 1928 Marguerite Ann Johnson was born in St. Louis Missouri Period: Apr 4, 1928 to May 28, 2014 Maya Angelou Timeline 1931 Angelou's parents separated and she and her brother moved to live with their grandmother 1935 Angelou and her brother moved back to St. Louis to live with their mother 1937 Angelou was raped by her mother's boyfriend, became mute, and sent to live with her grandmother 1942 One of Angelou's high school teachers in San Francisco helped her speak again and sparked her interest in literature 1942 She dropped out of school to work as San Francisco's first African American female cable car conductor 1943 She returned to school and became pregnant. She gave birth to her son named Guy 1952 She became a singer a night clubs and took on the name Maya Angelou shortly after her marriage failed 1958 Moved to New York to develop skills in writing poetry and joined the Harlem Writers Guild 1959 She became a Civil Rights activist 1970 She published I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings 1970 Angelou received the Chubb Award from Yale University 1984 Met Oprah Winfrey and became her friend and mentor 2008 She received the Hope for Peace and Justice of Peace award May 28, 2014 Angelou passed away