Houston, Charles Hamilton, 1895-1950

African American attorney, educator, and advocate of civil rights and educational desegregation; vice-dean, Howard University School of Law (1929-1935).

From the description of Papers, 1857-1950 ; (bulk 1922-1950). (Moorland-Spingarn Resource Center). WorldCat record id: 70941394

Biographical Note

William LePre Houston

• 1870, May 14: Born, Mound City, Ill.
• 1890: Passed Civil Service exam and hired as a clerk in the War Department Record and Pension Office
• 1891: Married Mary Ethel Hamilton
• 1892: Graduated, Howard University Law School, Washington, D.C.
• 1906 - 1909 : Grand Master of Odd Fellows in the United States
• 1909: Resigned clerk position
• 1910: Began independent law practice Began teaching academic law, night school, Howard University, Washington D.C.
• 1915: Cofounder, Supreme Order of the Helpers
• 1921 - 1924 : Appointed to District of Columbia Board of Education
• 1924: With son, Charles Hamilton Houston, formed law firm of Houston & Houston
• 1937: Appointed special assistant to United States Attorney General
• 1953, Sept. 9: Died, Washington, D.C.

Charles Hamilton Houston

• 1895, Sept. 3: Born, Washington, D.C.
• 1915: Graduated Phi Beta Kappa, Amherst College, Amherst, Mass.
• 1918 - 1919 : Army service during World War I
• 1922: LL.B, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Mass.
• 1923: S.J.D., Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Mass.
• 1923 - 1924 : Studied civil law, Sheldon Fellowship, University of Madrid, Spain
• 1924: Passed District of Columbia bar Married Margaret Gladys Moran (divorced 1938)
• 1924 - 1950 : Practiced law with his father in the firm Houston & Houston, later Houston, Houston, Hastie & Waddy
• 1924 - 1935 : Faculty member, Howard University Law School, Washington, D.C., including stints as professor, vice dean, and chief administrative officer
• 1935 - 1940 : Special counsel to NAACP
• 1938: Married Henrietta Williams Argued Missouri ex rel. Gaines v. Canada before United States Supreme Court
• 1950, Apr. 22: Died, Washington, D.C.

From the guide to the William LePre Houston Family Papers, 1777-1936, (bulk 1890-1936), (Manuscript Division Library of Congress)