The students of the Radical University: Edward M. Babbitt

Edward Miles Babbitt (b. 1858; d. February 13, 1897)
Rhode Island.  White. 
Occupation: Real estate broker.  
Father's occupation: clergyman, professor.

Edward M. Babbitt was born in 1858 in  Providence, RI to Mary Elizabeth Babbitt and Benjamin Bosworth Babbitt.  His family is described in the blogpost on his brother Charles.  When Edward was two years old (in 1860), the family moved to Andover, MA as his father was appointed to Christ's Church.  The family left New England in 1871 to move to South Carolina.  His father reportedly moved to found a church, but by March, he had been appointed Professor of Natural and Mechanical Philosophy and Astronomy at the University of South Carolina.

In Columbia, Edward and his brother Charles attended the Columbia Male Academy. In Fall, 1872, Edward matriculated at the University of South Carolina. The first African-American student matriculated at USC the next year. Edward was one of the few students to remain at the university after this happened. The other students were Edward's brother Charles and Charles, Francis, and Olin, all children of Professor Cummings. 

Edward did not complete the degree and had returned to Providence, RI by 1880.  There he worked as a real estate  broker.  In Rhode Island, he was active in city and state government.  In January 1884, he was elected to the Providence common council (the city legislative body), but he resigned the position in September 1885.  For the 1884-1885 political year, he also served as a state House Representative from Providence.

Edward died on February 13, 1897 in Hartford, Connecticut.

Sources
1). Browne, William Bradford, The Babbitt family history, 1643-1900.  Taunton, Mass. : C. A. Hack, 1912.

2). Rhode Island Reading Room; accessed March 18, 2020.

3). Providence, Rhode Island, City Directory, 1885, 1886, 1887.

4). Rhode Island State Census, 1885. Microfilm. New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts

5). 1860; Census Place: Andover, Essex, Massachusetts; Page: 165; Family History Library Film: 803496

6). Bayles, Richard M.  History of Providence County, Rhode Island.  Vol. 1.  W. W. Preston & Co., New York. (1891). p. 318.

7).  Addeman, Joshua M.  Manual with Rules and Orders for the Use of the General Assembly of the State of Rhode Island, 1884-85.  E. L. Freeman & Co., Providence, R.I.  (1884)

8). Connecticut Deaths and Burials, 1772–1934.  FHL Film Number: 3359.

9) "Columbia Male Academy Reunion Now Proposed." The State, May 2, 1926. p. 15.