Landmarks in Afro-American Dentistry

NOTE: The text on this page is that from an exhibit of materials in the Dentistry Library of the University of Michigan beginning January 2000. The images shown here are not the images from the actual axhibit, and we urge interested parties to visit the actual exhibit.

I would imagine that these men would say, "Prepare yourselves for the best type of dentistry. Get the best wherever it is available. Then help in the fight to make and keep it the best in our own institutions so that sometime in the not too distant future what we now call our 'Negro' institutions will not be Negro institutions, but will be world institutions that have made such outstanding contributions that they too will be regarded as places where the very best in dental knowledge can be obtained." It is only by keeping such goals and ideals in mind that we can ever hope to eliminate the educational barriers of race and fulfill our social responsibilities to the art and science of Dentistry. Dummett, Clifton O. "An Opinion on the responsibilities of the Negro members of the dental profession to Dentistry." The Bulletin of the National Dental Association, 5(2) 1947:13-18. [Written while he was on sabbatical from his position as Dean of the Department of Dentistry at Meharry Medical College, having entered the Masters program in the School of Public Health here at the University of Michigan.]

1740 ("Simon")
"The first written account of an African-American dentist practicing in the colonies appears in a Pennsylvania newspaper. The article states that an African American named Simon is able to "bleed and draw teeth." " Cowan, Tom; Maguire, Jack. Timelines of African-American History: 500 Years of Black Achievement. NY, NY: Roundtable Press/Perigee Books, (c)1994, p. 24. CALL NUMBER: E 185 .C861 1994 UGL
1860s (Freeman)
Robert Tanner Freeman was the first African-American graduate from Harvard's School of Dentistry. Inexplicably, this honor is sometimes erroneously attributed to Dr. George F. Grant, also an African American dentist and Harvard graduate, who in 1899 designed and patented the first golf tee. Ring, Malvin. Dentistry: An Illustrated History. St. Louis: Mosby, (c)1985, pp. 286-287. CALL NUMBER: RK29 .R541 1985 DENT

1890 (Ida Gray)

Ida Gray (later known as Ida Gray Nelson) is not only the first African-American woman to graduate from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, but also the first to graduate from any dental school! In addition, she was the first black woman to practice dentistry in Chicago, and mentored other African-American women into the profession. Driskell, Claude Evans. The History of Chicago Black Dental Professionals 1850-1983. Chicago: Driskell, (c)1982, pp. 22-24. CALL NUMBER: RK 34 .C4 D78 1982 DENT

1886 (Meharry)
It would be difficult to discuss the history of African-American dentistry without mentioning Meharry Medical College. For the greater portion of this century, Meharry, along with Howard University, were the first or only choices of dental schools for most African Americans. Here you see on the left the 1886 announcement for the Department of Dentistry at Meharry. On the right you the first three graduates of the new program in 1887: Henry T. Noel, Robert F. Boyd (later an NDA president), and John W. Anderson. Dummett, Clifton Orrin; Dummett, Lois Doyle. Dental Education at Meharry Medical College. Nashville, Tennesee: Meharry Medical College, (c)1992, pp. 24-25. CALL NUMBER RK 97 .M46 D851 1992 DENT
1902 (Bryant)
Ollie L. Bryant, shown here in her graduation photo, was the first African-American woman to graduate from Meharry Medical College, and the first to practice dentistry in the American South. Kidd, Foster. Profile of the Negro in American Dentistry. Washington: Howard University Press / Society for Research and Study of the Negro in Dentistry, (c)1979, pp.44-45. CALL NUMBER: RK 34.U5 P96 1979 DENT
1913-1930s (NDA founding)
Meharry and Howard University faculty and alumni were instrumental in the establishment of professional organizations and a supportive social network for African American dentists. They were both involved in the initial inclusion of dentists in the National Negro Medical Association, various regional and state dental associations, and the later development of their own professional association, the National Dental Association (not to be confused with the earlier National Dental Association which became the ADA). Here you see Dr. David A. Ferguson, the first president of the National Dental Association, earlier also a president of the Tri-State Dental Association. Webb, Harvey; Rhodes, Lloyd Cecil. The Book of Presidents: Leaders of Organized Dentistry. Charlottesville, Virginia: National Dental Association, (c)1977. CALL NUMBER RK 34 .U5 N277 W37 DENT
1940s to 1990s
These four selections show the growth of African Americans in dentistry over time, while simultaneously demonstrating the continuing lack of parity, that there continue to be fewer Afro-American dentists than one should expect given the size of the national Afro-American population. It is especially dramatic to note in Dr. Dummett's original article on this topic dated 1946 that only 24 Afro-American dental students were being served by institutions other than Meharry and Howard (ie. "white dental schools"). 1946: Dummett, Clifton O. "Improving Dentistry in the Negro Population." The Bulletin of the National Dental Association, 1946 5(1):13-18. 1952: Dummett, Clifton Orrin. The Growth and Development of the Negro in Dentistry in the United States. Chicago: National Dental Association, (c)1952, p. 77. 1986: Estimates and Projections of Black and Hispanic Physicians, Dentists, and Pharmacists to 2010. Rockville, MD: US Dept. of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Health Resources and Services Adminstration, Bureau of Health Professions, Division of Disadvantages Assistance, 1986, Tables 30-31. CALL NUMBER R695 E881 1986 DENT 1996: ADA Survey Center. "The Demographics of Dentistry." JADA September 1996 127:1327.

1940s to present (Dummett)

Just as it is difficult to discuss African American dentistry without Howard and Meharry, it is impossible to conduct a study of this topic without the works of Clifton Orrin Dummett. Dr. Dummett is still an active writer on this topic, an amazing fact considering he has been writing about the role of African Americans in dentistry for over fifty years now! In this 1949 biography, they announce that he has resigned his post as Dean of the Department of Dentistry at Meharry. At the time he accepted that post, he was the youngest Dean ever of a school of Dentistry. Following this period in his life, Dr. Dummett went on to receive several honors, not the least of which was his term as President of the International Association of Dental Research, the first black person to hold this honor. The image shown here in the web version of the exhibit is from the IADR web site history pages. Bulletin of the National Dental Association 1949 7(4):263.

1990s onward ...

Here you see the ground-breaking and award-winning book on the future of Afro-American dentistry, by two important contemporary leaders in the profession: University of Michigan faculty Michael Razzoog and Emerson Robinson. Razzoog, Michael E.; Robinson, Emerson. Black dentistry in the 21st century. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan, School of Dentistry, (c)1991. CALL NUMBER: RK 60.45 B63x 1991 DENT

Additional resources and tidbits.

Encarta offers an article for Black History Month by Barbara Worley on African American dentistry: http://encarta.manga.net/events/black_history_month/africana/sc_aa09.asp African American Contributions to Golf: http://usgtf.com/magazine/magfall99/african.html From the Greater Flint Afro-American Hall of Fame, you may find that Herb Odom, boxing great, left boxing to become a dentist and currently practices in Chicago. Dr, Odom is another Meharry graduate. http://www.flint.lib.mi.us/fpl/resources/sports/hallfame/91/odom91.html Ida Mae Hiram followed the footsteps of Ollie Bryant not just by being another Meharry graduate, but also in becoming the first licensed African American woman dentist in Georgia. http://www.sos.state.ga.us/misc/womenbio1998.htm A brief biography of Ida Gray is available at http://toptags.com/aama/bio/women/drgray.htm. A discussion of the significance of Ida's role, and the tremendous role played by the University of Michigan in educating African American women is available at http://herald.wmich.edu/1997/oct/21/3551.html. Before 1844, Peter Mott bought the first of three parcels of land on which his house was later constructed from Jacob C. White, Sr., a wealthy African American dentist and active participant in the Underground Railroad. http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/underground/nj2.htm. Jamaica-born John Sommerville, was California's first African American dentist even though he was not allowed to practice. He opened the first luxury hotel for Africans west of the Mississippi River, which later became known as the Dunbar Hotel. http://hierographicsonline.org/yourhistoryonline/yourhistoryonlineVIII.htm Kellogg African American Health Care Project http://www.med.umich.edu/haahc/ This incredible site includes interviews with three African American dentists who have spent much of their careers working in Michigan and Detroit: Leon Gant: http://www.med.umich.edu/haahc/Oralbios/gant.htm Joseph B. Harris: http://www.med.umich.edu/haahc/Oralbios/harris.htm; and Horace L. Jefferson: http://www.med.umich.edu/haahc/Oralbios/jefferson.htm. To find an African American dentist in your area, please contact the National Dental Association, http://www.natdent.org/