Thomas Wyatt Turner
| Thomas Wyatt Turner | |
|---|---|
| Born |
March 16, 1877 Hughesville, Maryland, United States |
| Died | April 21, 1978 (aged 101) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education |
Howard University, Cornell University |
| Occupation | college professor, botanist |
| Known for | founding member of NAACP |
| Title | emeritus professor |
| Spouse(s) | Laura Miller, Louise Wright |
| Parent(s) | Eli Turner and Linnie Gross (Turner) |
| Website | http://www.nathanielturner.com/thomaswyattturner.htm |
Thomas Wyatt Turner (March 16, 1877 – April 21, 1978) was an American civil rights activist, biologist and educator. Born in Hughesville, Maryland, Turner attended Episcopal local schools after Catholic schools refused to admit him because of his race.
After receiving the proper credentials, Turner headed to the Tuskegee Institute, Alabama, where he taught academics in biology. Later, he gave service to various public schools in Baltimore, Maryland. From 1914 to 1924, he served as a Professor of Botany at Howard University in Washington, D.C., and also served from 1914 to 1920 as the Acting Dean at the Howard's School of Education.
While working at Cornell University in 1918, Turner did special work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Maine, where he examined potato fields. The American government consulted Turner throughout his career about agricultural problems. Under the auspices of the United States Secretary of Agriculture, Turner worked as a collaborator on Virginia's plant diseases. He was also the first black person ever to receive a doctorate from Cornell. In 1931, Turner organized the Virginia Conference of College Science Teachers in 1931, and served as president of that group for two terms. Turner also was a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and of the American Society for Horticultural Science, both of which he was very active in.
Turner was also known as an activist who was a staunch defender of black rights and civil liberties. His activism, curiously, has overshadowed his many scientific accomplishments. In 1909, he was a founding member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and was also active in trying to get blacks the right to vote. He was eventually honored with a lifetime membership in the NAACP. Turner was initiated as a member of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity in 1915.
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