Black Health and Wellness: Dr. Charlie O. Hunter, Dr. Benjamin F. Davis, and Dr. James Stewart Aegle

While compiling the information for this week’s post, continuing with the theme Black Health and Wellness, I noticed that most of the medical professionals practicing in Maury County were not native Tennesseans, but almost all received their training from the Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN. The Meharry Medical College was organized as the Medical Department of the Central Tennessee College in 1876, and was the first medical school in the Southern states to open its doors for the education of African American physicians. By 1912, of those who had graduated in medicine, 95 percent were practicing with an income ranging from $500 to $5,000 per year. 

Dr. Charlie O. Hunter (1866-1937), a physician and surgeon, was born in Mississippi. Dr. Jones was an active member of the National Medical Association. In addition, he was a Grand Medical Register of the Odd Fellows and Court of Calanthe.

Dr. Benjamin F. Davis (1883-1950), originally from Mississippi, graduated from Rust University in 1906 and Meharry Medical College in 1910. He completed post-graduate courses at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of the University of Illinois. He passed the Illinois and Tennessee State Board of Medical Examiners and practiced for a year in Illinois before relocating to Columbia, TN.

Dr. James Stewart Aegle (1888-1957), born in Jamaica, British West Indies, was the first African American dentist in Mt. Pleasant. He graduated from Meharry Medical College in 1913. Aegle served in the U.S. Army during World War I. His medical practice was on Olive Street. His wife, Ruby, was a public school teacher.

Author: Jo Ann McClellan, Maury County Historian and African American Heritage Society President