Aaron McDuffie Moore - by Blake Hill-Saya (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Aaron McDuffie Moore (1863-1923) was born in rural Columbus County in eastern North Carolina at the close of the Civil War. Defying the odds stacked against an African American of this era, he pursued an education, alternating between work on the family farm and attending school. Moore originally dreamed of becoming an educator and attended notable teacher training schools in the state. But later, while at Shaw University, he followed another passion and entered Leonard Medical School. Dr. Moore graduated with honors in 1888 and became the first practicing African American physician in the city of Durham, North Carolina. He went on to establish the Durham Drug Company and the Durham Colored Library; spearhead and run Lincoln Hospital, the city's first secular, freestanding African American hospital; cofound North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company; help launch Rosenwald schools for African American children statewide; and foster the development of Durham's Hayti community. His legacy can still be seen on the city streets and country backroads today, and an examination of his life provides key insights into the history of Durham, the state, and the nation during Reconstruction and the beginning of the Jim Crow Era"--

Book Synopsis

Aaron McDuffie Moore (1863-1923) was born in rural Columbus County in eastern North Carolina at the close of the Civil War. Defying the odds stacked against an African American of this era, he pursued an education, alternating between work on the family farm and attending school. Moore originally dreamed of becoming an educator and attended notable teacher training schools in the state. But later, while at Shaw University, he followed another passion and entered Leonard Medical School. Dr. Moore graduated with honors in 1888 and became the first practicing African American physician in the city of Durham, North Carolina. He went on to establish the Durham Drug Company and the Durham Colored Library; spearhead and run Lincoln Hospital, the city's first secular, freestanding African American hospital; cofound North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company; help launch Rosenwald schools for African American children statewide; and foster the development of Durham's Hayti community.

Dr. Moore was one-third of the mighty "Triumvirate" alongside John Merrick and C. C. Spaulding, credited with establishing Durham as the capital of the African American middle class in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and founding Durham's famed Black Wall Street. His legacy can still be seen on the city streets and country backroads today, and an examination of his life provides key insights into the history of Durham, the state, and the nation during Reconstruction and the beginning of the Jim Crow Era.

Review Quotes

"[A] well-written narrative. . . . [Hill-Saya] brings[s] to the fore not only the accomplishments of one of the outstanding Black community leaders of the Jim Crow South but . . . shine[s] a light on the vastly overlooked role that the Black professional class had in shaping the South during the segregation era."--Journal of African American History

"A readable, lyrically written biography. . . . Hill-Saya imbues this work with love and admiration for the physician, entrepreneur, and educator that has endured across generations."--Journal of Southern History

"Suitable for inclusion in any academic or special library with a focus on the contributions of African Americans to the field of medicine."--North Carolina Libraries

About the Author

Blake Hill-Saya is a classical musician and creative writer living in Los Angeles. G. K. Butterfield is a U.S. Representative representing the 1st District of North Carolina, which stretches from Durham to Elizabeth City. C. Eileen Watts Welch is the president and CEO of Durham Colored Library, Inc.