Historical Black Alumni of
Dartmouth College

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Matthew Washington Bullock
(1881–1972 )
Dartmouth College A.B. 1904

Matthew Washington Bullock
Class of 1904

Athlete, Lawyer, and Civil Rights Advocate


alumnus image Matt Bullock’s name is synonymous with Dartmouth's gridiron success in the early 1900s. The son of formerly enslaved parents, he attended Boston public schools before entering Dartmouth and establishing an excellent academic record. He was the second Black Ivy League football player and an honorable mention All-American. Matt sang with the Glee Club and was once acclaimed as the "famous colored Baritone of Dartmouth." Later, he earned a Harvard J.D. A founder of Boston's National Urban League, he was assistant to the Massachusetts Attorney General and Chair of the Massachusetts Parole Board. A loyal alumnus, he established a Dartmouth scholarship to honor his parents.

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Historical Black Alumni of
Dartmouth College

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William Richard Randolph Granger
(1890–1973 )
Dartmouth College B.S. 1915

William Richard Randolph Granger
Class of 1915

Athlete, Physician, and Brother of Four Dartmouth Alumni


alumnus image William R. Granger grew up in Newark, NJ, the eldest son of an American-educated physician from Barbados and a teacher. He set local and national track records in high school and college. After earning his M.D. at Columbia and interning at Freedmen's Hospital in Washington DC, he settled in New York City for a 52-year career in medicine and public service. Granger was the first of five brothers to graduate from Dartmouth. Three became physicians, and one a dentist. The fifth, Lester '18, served as Executive Director of the National Urban League from 1941 to 1961. Today, Dartmouth's Tucker Foundation annually presents The Lester Granger '18 Award to a Dartmouth graduate for exemplary commitment to public service, social activism, or nonprofit professions.

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Historical Black Alumni of
Dartmouth College

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Julius Purcell Haynes
(1866–1941 )
Dartmouth Medical School M.D. 1888

Julius Purcell Haynes
Class of 1888

College Baseball Player and Physician


alumnus image Julius P. Haynes was born in 1866 in Holly Springs, Mississippi, and raised in Galveston, Texas. He prepared at Wilberforce University's Preparatory Department in Ohio before entering Dartmouth Medical School and graduating in 1888. He mastered the three-year course and was named the anatomy demonstrator. After training at Long Island College Hospital in Brooklyn, NY, Haynes moved to Toledo, Ohio, to begin a 50-year medical practice, fully engaged in the city's political and social life. While studying at Dartmouth, a photographer captured shots of Haynes with the Medical School's baseball team. These images identified Haynes as one of the earliest Black members of a collegiate athletic team. Haynes died in 1941.

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Historical Black Alumni of
Dartmouth College

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Talley Robert Holmes
(1889–1969 )
Dartmouth College A.B. 1910

Talley Robert Holmes
Class of 1910

Attorney and American Tennis Association Co-Founder


alumnus image Talley R. Holmes, a lawyer and educator from Washington DC, was among the American Tennis Association (A.T.A.) founders in 1916 and its first national champion. The A.T.A. was formed in response to Jim Crow exclusion from mainstream tennis organizations. Holmes won twelve A.T.A. championships. Following him in later years, Arthur Ashe and Althea Gibson began their careers on the A.T.A. circuit. A prominent figure among Washington elites, Holmes was an owner of the historic Whitelaw Hotel, just off U Street N.W., a center of African American culture frequented by Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.

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Historical Black Alumni of
Dartmouth College

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Leslie Lawrence Pollard
(1886–1915 )
Dartmouth College 1910 1912

Leslie Lawrence Pollard
Class of 1912

Dartmouth Halfback and Journalist


alumnus image Leslie L. Pollard, a star high school athlete from Chicago, played halfback at Dartmouth. His brother, Fritz Pollard, had preceded him to the Ivy League at Brown. Both brothers were standouts on the gridiron. Leslie had a stellar game against Harvard in 1909, and Boston papers noted that only his weight kept him from being chosen All-American. After college, a short career in semi-professional football, and several years coaching at Lincoln University, he began a promising career in journalism. He died from accidental carbon monoxide asphyxiation in Brooklyn at age 29.

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Historical Black Alumni of
Dartmouth College

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John Andrew Shelburne
(1894–1978 )
Dartmouth College B.S. 1919

John Andrew Shelburne
Class of 1919

Football All-American and Roxbury Social Worker


alumnus image John A. Shelburne from Boston excelled at Dartmouth in track and football, earning All-American recognition. Afterward, he played with the Hammond (IN) Pros as one of the first five Blacks to integrate professional football. He then coached Lincoln University's football team to winning records before returning to Boston as youth director with the Robert Gould Shaw House. Boston dedicated a day in his name to recognize his thirty years of service to the Roxbury community. An honorary degree from New England College read, "Yours has been a life characterized by excellence; an excellent mind in a hugely excellent body; an excellent heart welling with warmth for the thousands of young people who have often had great need of a friend. These excellent tools you have used with a humility that is always the hallmark of greatness."

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