Dr. Hildrus Augustus Poindexter (May 10,1901- April 21, 1987) was an African-American bacteriologist, epidemiologist, and expert on tropical diseases. Born to formerly enslaved parents and the 6th of 11 children, he grew up poor and in a rural area which would influence his decision to enter the natural sciences. He obtained his BA (1924) cum laude at Lincoln University, and he is the first African American to receive both an MD at Harvard University School of Medicine (1929) and PhD in Microbiology and Immunology at Columbia University (1932). He also obtained a MA in Microbiology (1930) and MSPH (1937) from Columbia.
Overcoming many barriers in his career, Dr. Poindexter became the first known Black scientist to become board-certified in microbiology by the American Board of Medical Microbiology. He was once passed over for a laboratory position in the Philippines due to his race. In his 1973 autobiography, he mentioned how he had to work in the railroads and coal mines to pay for school, efforts in the military to feed him meals in a different space than the other main officers, and his membership in the American Society of Parasitologists being rejected after they learned he was Black. He was one of the founders of Beta Kappa Chi honor society.
He taught at Howard University from 1931-1943, becoming Professor and Chair of the Department of Bacteriology in 1936. Dr. Poindexter enlisted in the U.S. Army Medical Corps during WWII as a Major, where he served in Liberia, Indochina, Sierra Leone, and Iraq (to name a few places) as a malaria expert. His work was instrumental in preventing many troops from contracting diseases. He also conducted surveys that identified syphilis and malnutrition of African Americans in the rural South. He was awarded a Bronze Star in 1944 for reducing malaria and schistosomiasis, and promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in 1945. He then served as a commissioned officer of the US Public Health Service (USPHS) from 1947-1965. In 1947 he held the rank of Captain, and after 1949 he was a Medical Director with the rank of Colonel. After leaving the USPHS, he retired and taught courses on epidemiology, tropical diseases, international health, and geriatrics at Howard Medical School. He received four honorary Doctor of Science degrees. He continued to teach and mentor notable scientists at Howard university until his death in 1987.
References:
- https://badahistory.net/view.php?ID=82
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2610987/
- https://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2021/dr-hildrus-poindexter-making-a-difference-through-science-and-inspiration/
- https://face2faceafrica.com/article/dr-hildrus-poindexter-the-first-african-american-to-receive-both-an-md-and-phd
- https://poindexterhistory.com/hildrus/
- https://archive.dartmouthalumnimagazine.com/article/1967/1/1/public-health-director
Image Source:
Photography by L.J. Bruce-Chwatt
Wellcome Collection gallery (2018-04-01)
Photo number: V0028003
https://wellcomecollection.org/works/tcgr9uef
Licensed by Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence
