Lucy Ella Moten
Lucy Ella Moten (1851 – Aug. 24, 1933) was an African American educator and doctor. A principal[1] of The Miner School from 1883 to 1920, she was responsible for training many of the teachers in Washington, D.C. African American schools during that period.[2]
Early life
Moten was born a free woman in Fauquier County, Virginia. Her mother, Julija (Withers) Moten, and her father, Benjamin Moten, were free African Americans. Her family moved to Washington D.C. in part to help further her education at the public schools opened for African Americans in Washington in 1862. Washington's public schools remained segregated until 1954.
Education
Moten attended Howard University for two years and then enrolled at the State Normal School in Salem, Massachusetts. She graduated from the school in 1875. She received an M.D. from the Howard University Medical College in 1897.
Career
Moten returned to teach in the Washington D.C. public schools for African Americans, including the O Street School. In 1883, African American leader Frederick Douglass recommended her for the post of principal of Miner Normal School, which trained African American teachers. While heading the Miner School, she decided to enroll at Howard University Medical College so she could better care for her students' health and establish a hygiene course in the school's curriculum. She also spent many summers in the American South teaching at "vacation schools" for educators.
Death and legacy
She retired in 1920 and moved to New York City, where she died after being struck by a taxi cab in Times Square. Moten Elementary School in Washington, D.C. is named for her.
References
- ↑ "Boyd's Directory of the District of Columbia". Retrieved 27 February 2016.
- ↑ James, Edward T., Notable American Women, 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary, Vol 2