William J. Bauduit: the third Black member of the AMS

William J. Bauduit
NIKH (Howard University yearbook) , Vol. 1, 1914

Alongside Oscar G. Lawless, William J. Bauduit was one of the two Black mathematicians admitted as members of the American Mathematical Society in 1921, seven years after the first Black mathematician had been admitted. In this blogpost, we will look at Professor Bauduit.

Professor Bauduit was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on May 13, 1879 to Ernest and Angelle (or Angel) Picou Bauduit. Information about the parents before the Civil War is hard to come by. His father may have  a free person-of-color in Jefferson township in 1850. No records about Angelle from this period have been found.

Ernest and Angelle married the year after the Civil War ended (in 1866). They had a large number of children, and William had at least four older siblings. In the first years after the war, Ernest worked as a metropolitan police officer. His employment was a reflection of changed conditions. The defeat of the Confederacy had empowered a pro-Black Republican Party which employed a number of Black men in city and state government. 

By the time Professor Bauduit was born, the Republican Party in Louisiana had collapsed and political power was firmly in the hands of a conservative Democratic Party dominated by ex-Confederates. Bauduit's father found work as a plasterer.

Bauduit was educated in the New Orleans public schools. He was fortunate as the city had excellent options for Black children. He graduated from Southern University (which ran a high school program) in 1896. He then continued living with his parents and working as a school teacher.

In 1904, Bauduit began attending the University of Chicago. He first attended the university during the summers. In 1908, he attended for the full year and graduated in June 1909. He then pursued graduate work. He was advised by William Duncan MacMillan and wrote the dissertation "Motion of a Particle Attached to a Spring." He was awarded an M.S. degree in 1911.

Bauduit moved to Washington D.C. after completing his college education. He was hired as a mathematics instructor at Howard University. By 1914, he was promoted to associate professor. His senior colleague was Kelly Miller. 

Professor Bauduit remained at Howard University for the rest of his career. He also taught at Morehouse College. He died in January 1959.

Sources

1. Year: 1930; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 0213; FHL microfilm: 2340032

2. Year: 1900; Census Place: New Orleans Ward 14, Orleans, Louisiana; Roll: 575; Page: 10; Enumeration District: 0130

3. Year: 1880; Census Place: New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana; Roll: 464; Page: 353B; Enumeration District: 086

4. Year: 1940; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: m-t0627-00566; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 1-408

5. National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Washington, Washington, District of Columbia; Roll: 3462; Page: 71; Enumeration District: 1-874

6. "Southern University." The Times-Democrat. June 26, 1896. p. 15. 

7. "Southern University." The Times-Picayune. November 4, 1886. p. 8. amaze

8. The National Archives in Washington D.C.; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M432; Residence Date: 1850; Home in 1850: Jefferson, Jefferson, Louisiana; Roll: 232; Page: 31a