Lewis Baxter Moore (1866–1928) was an American

classicist Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

, scholar, university teacher, and

Presbyterian pastor Presbyterian (or presbyteral) polity is a method of church governance ("ecclesiastical polity") typified by the rule of assemblies of presbyters, or elders. Each local church is governed by a body of elected elders usually called the session (or ...

. He was the first African American to earn a Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD) from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

Early life and education

Lewis Baxter Moore was born on September 1, 1866, in or near

Huntsville Huntsville is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the 100th-most populous city in the U.S. The Huntsville metropolitan area had an estimated 525,465 ...

, in Madison County Alabama, to parents Rebecca (Beasley or Love) M. and Henry Moore. Moore received a B.A. degree (1889) and a M.A. degree (1893) from

Fisk University Fisk University is a Private university, private Historically black colleges and universities, historically black Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus i ...

, a

HBCU Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...

in Nashville, Tennessee. His Ph.D. was received in 1896 from the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), where he was the first African American to earn a Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD) from the school. He graduated from the classics department at UPenn and his dissertation was entitled, “The Stage in Sophocles’ Plays.” His dissertation has been lost.

Career

Moore worked at

Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...

in Washington, D.C. from 1895 until 1920, and for many years as the

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean * Dean Sw ...

at Howard University's Teachers’ College. When they lived in Washington, D.C., his niece Sadie T. M. Alexander lived with them. He was a member of the

American Philological Association The Society for Classical Studies (SCS), formerly known as the American Philological Association (APA), is a non-profit North American scholarly organization devoted to all aspects of Greek and Roman civilization founded in 1869. It is the pree ...

(now Society for Classical Studies), from 1896 to 1907. During these years (1896 to 1907), Moore helped with the establishment of the first "colored" branch of the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

in Philadelphia, known as the Christian Street YMCA. In his later life he became an ordained minister, and for the last three years of his life he was the pastor of the Faith Presbyterian Church in Germantown, Philadelphia.

Death and legacy

He died at the age of 62 on December 12, 1928, in Philadelphia, and is buried in Eden Cemetery in

Collingdale Collingdale is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 8,908 at the 2020 census. Local governance The Borough of Collingdale follows a council-manager form of governance. The Borough Council is composed ...

, Pennsylvania. Moore's work was included in a traveling group exhibition, "12 Black Classicists" (2003–present) presented by Prof. Michele Valerie Ronnick, from

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public university, public research university in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 375 programs. It is Michigan's third-l ...

in Detroit. This exhibition was funded by two grants from the James Loeb Classical Library Foundation at Harvard University, and the exhibition has travelled to 79 locations across the United States, as well as the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moore, Lewis Baxter 1866 births 1928 deaths 19th-century African-American academics 19th-century American academics 20th-century African-American academics 20th-century American academics African-American Presbyterian ministers American Presbyterian ministers Classics educators Fisk University alumni Howard University faculty University of Pennsylvania alumni