Samuel Proctor Massie Jr (1919 - 2005)

Born 3 Jul 1919 in Argenta, Pulaski, Arkansas, United States

Ancestors

Died 10 Apr 2005 at age 85 in Laurel, Howard, Maryland, United States

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Biography

Samuel Massie Jr is Notable.

Samuel Proctor Massie, Jr. was a chemist whose research over fifty years led to the development of drugs to treat mental illness, malaria, meningitis, gonorrhea, herpes, and cancer. Chemical and Engineering News in 1998 named him one of the top seventy-five chemists of all time. He also worked with uranium isotopes and was part of the Manhattan Project to develop atomic bombs in World War II, and was a leading educator who taught at several universities . ^[1][2]

Samuel was born in 1919 near Little Rock, Arkansas^[3]. He was the son of Samuel Massie Sr. and his wife Earlee Jacko Massie.^[4] Both his parents were educators; his father was a pastor in the A.M.E. church and civil rights activist.^[1] In the 1930 census Samuel was living with his parents and a younger brother in North Little Rock, Arkansas.^[5]

He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry in 1937 at the age of 18 from what is now University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, followed by a master's degree in chemistry from Fisk University and ultimately a PhD at Iowa State University. His PhD work was delayed by World War II, when he worked in the Ames Laboratory as part of the Manhattan Project from 1943 to 1945.

Samuel married Gloria Bell Thompkins in 1947 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ^[6] She was a psychology professor at Bowie State University and also a columnist for Jet magazine.^[1] In 1950 they were living in Antelope, Oklahoma with two sons.^[7]

Samuel taught at Langston University in Oklahoma for 6 years, then at Fisk University for another 7 years. In 1954, he published a paper, The Chemistry of Phenothiazine, a classic in the field from which anti-psychotic medications were developed.^[8]

In 1960 he moved to Washington, DC where he was the Associate Program Director for Special Project in Science Education at the National Science Foundation, while also teaching at Howard University. In 1963 he became the President of North Carolina College at Durham. In 1966, Samuel became the first African-American professor at the U.S. Naval Academy, where he helped establish a black studies program.

His lifetime honors include:^[9]

• 1960- One of six best college chemistry professors in the U.S.
• 1978- One of top 75 chemists of all time (by Chemical and Engineering News)
• 1988- Lifetime Achievemetnt Award from the White House
• 1990- US Naval Academy Faculty Achievement Award
• 1995- Portrait hung in National Academy of Sciences gallery

He passed away in 2005 in Laurel, Maryland. He was buried in Saint Anne's Cemetery in Annapolis, Maryland.^[10]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Wikipedia entry for Samuel P Massie
2. ↑ Bradburn, Cary. "Samuel Proctor Massie Jr. (1919–2005)". Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Central Arkansas Library System. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
3. ↑ Birth: "Arkansas, Birth Certificates, 1914-1922"
   Arkansas Department of Vital Records; Little Rock, Arkansas; Birth Certificates; Year: 1919; Certificate Number: 873
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 61774 #142026 (accessed 18 July 2023)
   Samuel P Massie born on 3 Jul 1919, son of Samuel Roctor Massie & Earlee Lillian Jacks, in Argenta, Pulaski, Arkansas, USA.
4. ↑ Social Security: "U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007"
   Original data: Social Security Applications and Claims, 1936-2007
   Ancestry Record 60901 #47073776 (accessed 18 July 2023)
   Name: Samuel Proctor Massey Jr [Samuel Proctor Massie Jr] [Samuel Massie Jr]; Gender: Male; Race: Black; Birth Date: 3 Jul 1919; Birth Place: North Little Rock, Arkansas [N Little Roc??, Arkansas]; Death Date: 10 Apr 2005; Father: Samuel P Massie; Mother: Earlee L Jacko; Notes: Jun 1937: Name listed as SAMUEL PROCTOR MASSEY JR; Jun 1941: Name listed as SAMUEL PROCTOR MASSIE JR; 03 Jun 2005: Name listed as SAMUEL P MASSIE.
5. ↑ 1930 Census: "1930 United States Federal Census"
   Year: 1930; Census Place: North Little Rock, Pulaski, Arkansas; Page: 31B; Enumeration District: 0062; FHL microfilm: 2339827
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 6224 #23315002 (accessed 18 July 2023)
   Samuel P Massie (11), single son, in household of Samuel P Massie (41) at 902 E 9, North Little Rock, Pulaski, Arkansas, USA. Born in Arkansas.
6. ↑ Marriage: "Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., Marriage Index, 1885-1951"
   Ancestry Record 2536 #743043 (accessed 18 July 2023)
   Gloria B Tompkins marriage to Massie in 1947 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
7. ↑ 1950 Census: "1950 United States Federal Census"
   National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Antelope, Logan, Oklahoma; Roll: 3493; Page: 4; Enumeration District: 42-1B
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 62308 #56615807 (accessed 18 July 2023)
   Samual P Massie (30), married, College Teacher, head of household in Antelope, Logan, Oklahoma, USA. Born in Arkansas.
8. ↑ Publications of Dr Massie
9. ↑ Obituary: Free View of Clipping "U.S., Newspapers.com™ Obituary Index, 1800s-current"
   Chicago Tribune; Publication Date: 16 Apr 2005; Publication Place: Chicago, Illinois, USA; URL: https://www.newspapers.com/image/231932603/?article=69a43120-e4ba-4dbc-a4c6-f3d312f26d55&focus=0.006233385,0.5845065,0.2475051,0.8108725&xid=3355
   Ancestry Record 61843 #639240406 (accessed 18 July 2023)
   Name: Samuel P. Massie Jr.; Gender: Male; Death Age: 85; Birth Date: abt 1920; Birth Place: North Little Rock, Ark.; Death Date: 10 Apr 2005; Death Place: Laurel, MD.; Obituary Date: 16 Apr 2005; Obituary Place: Chicago, Illinois, USA; Newspaper Title: Chicago Tribune.
10. ↑ Burial: "U.S., Find a Grave® Index, 1600s-Current"
    Original data: Find a Grave. Find a Grave®. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi; URL: Find A Grave: Memorial #10764608
    Ancestry Record 60525 #98334861 (accessed 18 July 2023)
    Samuel Proctor Massie Jr burial (died on 10 Apr 2005) in Saint Anne's Cemetery, Annapolis, Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States of America.