Category:Henry E. Baker
Henry E. Baker matriculated at the USNA 1874-75, nearly two years, but did not graduate. The 3rd African-American to be appointed, he endured frequent verbal and physical abuse from an aggressive minority, especially southerners, and nearly total ostracism from all the remainder of his classmates. For some of the time he required a marine escort simply to attend class across the yard. He was generally known as "the moke" (from mocha, a chocolate). His defense of himself in kind often brought him before the officers. The decision was always in his favor on grounds of provocation. The opponents inevitably offered race as an excuse. They were disciplined, even expelled, to no avail. Civil War ideology was being taught at home across the south by ex-Confederate soldiers and their descendants. African-Americans had been set free nominally by the Emancipation Proclamation, but they were being denied their civil rights. Deciding finally that graduation was not worth the price, Baker resigned, earned a law degree from Howard University, entered the field of patent examination, and wrote of his experiences. No more African-Americans were appointed for 60 years. The Naval Academy was still racist in 1950, when service employees were required to be African-Americans, and were termed "the mokes." The term was no longer used of the few African-American midshipmen. The subsequent struggle for civil rights was to bring large changes to both the nation and the Academy. Born Columbus, Lowndes County, Mississippi.
American patent examiner and author  | |||||
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| Date of birth | 1 September 1857 Columbia | ||||
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| Date of death | 27 April 1928, 28 October 1928 Washington, D.C. | ||||
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Media in category "Henry E. Baker"
The following 2 files are in this category, out of 2 total.
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H.E. Baker.jpg 512 × 655; 99 KB
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Henry Edwin Baker.jpg 526 × 760; 61 KB
