Julius H. Taylor facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Julius H. Taylor
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Julius Taylor, left, at Morgan State University circa 1960
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| Born | February 15, 1914 Cape May Court House section of Middle Township, New Jersey
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| Died | August 27, 2011 (aged 97) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Lincoln University University of Pennsylvania |
| Scientific career | |
| Notable students | Conrad Williams Frederick Oliver Carl Clark |
Julius Henry "Jute" Taylor (born February 15, 1914 – died August 27, 2011) was a very important scientist and professor. He taught at Morgan State University for many years. He even helped start the physics department there and was its first leader.
Dr. Taylor was also the first African-American person to get a PhD in physics from the University of Pennsylvania. This was a huge achievement! His work focused on how X-rays spread and how electricity and light behave in special materials called semiconductors.
Contents
Early Life and School Days
Julius Henry Taylor was born on February 15, 1914, in Cape May, New Jersey. He was one of six children. His dad worked with bricks and concrete. His mom worked as a maid and at a drugstore.
Julius grew up in Cape May Court House. He went to Middle Township High School and finished in 1932. In high school, he was a great athlete. He ran track and was a champion at pole vaulting. He also played basketball and the trumpet.
His future wife, Patricia Spaulding, encouraged him to go to college. He enrolled at Lincoln University in Oxford, Pennsylvania. This is a historically Black university. He graduated in 1938 with a degree in chemistry. He paid for college by working odd jobs and playing his trumpet at night.
After Lincoln University, Taylor went to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. There, he earned his master's and PhD degrees in physics. He studied with Dr. Gaylord Harnwell. He received his PhD in solid state physics in 1947. He was a Rosenwald Fellow during his studies.
A Career in Science
After earning his PhD, Dr. Taylor did physics research for the United States Navy. Then, he started teaching at West Virginia State College in 1945. He became the head of the physics department there.
In 1949, he moved to Morgan State College in Baltimore, Maryland. Morgan State is also a historically Black university. The university president, Dr. Martin David Jenkins, asked him to come. He wanted Dr. Taylor to help create a physics department.
By 1954, Dr. Taylor had built up the physics program. He became the department's first chairman and a tenured professor. He helped many students earn their PhDs in physics. He also created special programs with other universities. These programs allowed students to earn two degrees, one in physics and one in engineering. These partnerships were with New York University, Cornell University, and the Rochester Institute of Technology.
Dr. Taylor also served on many important science groups. He worked with NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and the National Science Foundation. He was a leader in the American Association of Physics Teachers. He also helped start a committee for minorities in physics with Warren Henry. This committee was for the American Physical Society.
Starting in 1955, Dr. Taylor worked as an editor for a book called "The Negro in Science." This book was about important African-American scientists and their discoveries.
He was also involved in his community. He served on the board of the Maryland Academy of Sciences. He was appointed to the Maryland Public Broadcasting Commission in 1975. He was also a member of the NAACP.
Dr. Taylor retired in 1987. He continued teaching part-time at Morgan State University until 1999. There is now a special scholarship fund named after him at Morgan State. It is called the Julius H. Taylor Endowed Scholarship Fund. Even after retiring, he continued to mentor students in the Baltimore Public School system.
Amazing Athlete
While at Lincoln University, Julius Taylor was a talented track athlete. He was the first African-American person to compete in pole vaulting at the famous Penn Relays.
He also loved to play golf throughout his life, even into his nineties. He started and coached the first golf team at Morgan State College. His team won the CIAA Championship! In 2005, he was honored by being inducted into the African-American Golf Hall of Fame.
Personal Life
Julius Taylor married Patricia Spaulding in 1937. They had met in high school. Patricia had told him she would marry him only if he went to college and earned a degree. Patricia Spaulding worked as an executive assistant at Morgan State University. She passed away in 1997. Julius and Patricia had two children, a son and a daughter.
Awards and Honors
- Lincoln University and Grambling State University gave him honorary science degrees in 2004. This was for his great work in education.
- He was named Lincoln University Alumnus of the Year in 1963.
- He received a Distinguished Service Citation from the American Association of Physics Teachers in 1976.
- He got the Maryland Governor's Citation in 1986.
- He received the Technical Achiever Award from the National Technical Association in 2011. This award was given after he passed away.
Select Publications
- "Pressure Dependence of Resistance of Germanium," Physics Review, 1950. This paper was about how pressure affects the electrical resistance of a material called Germanium.
- "Establishing Physics Programs in Black Colleges," Physics Today, 1976 - with Robert Dixon. This article discussed how to create and improve physics programs at historically Black colleges.
