Brief Chronology

  • 1904 --Born June 3 in Washington, DC to Richard and Nora Drew
  • 1922 --Graduated from Dunbar High School, Washington, DC
  • 1926 --Received AB from Amherst College, Amherst, Massachusetts
  • 1926-28 --Athletic Director and Instructor in Biology and Chemistry at Morgan College, Baltimore, Maryland
  • 1933 --Received MD and Master of Surgery from McGill University Faculty of Medicine, MontrĂ©al, Canada
  • 1933-35 --Internship and residency at MontrĂ©al General Hospital
  • 1935-36 --Instructor in Pathology at Howard University School of Medicine, Washington, DC
  • 1936-37 --Assistant instructor in Surgery at Howard University and surgical resident at Freedmen's Hospital
  • 1937-38 --Instructor in Surgery at Howard University and Assistant Surgeon at Freedmen's Hospital
  • 1938-40 --Graduate work at Columbia University and surgical resident at Presbyterian Hospital, New York
  • 1939 --Married Minnie Lenore Robbins on September 23; they had three daughters (Bebe, Charlene, and Rhea) and a son (Charles Jr.)
  • 1940 --Received Doctorate in Medical Science from Columbia University for research and dissertation on blood banking; returned to Howard University School of Medicine as assistant professor of surgery and surgeon at Freedmen's Hospital (June)
  • September 1940-January 1941 --Medical supervisor for the Blood for Britain project organized by the the Blood Transfusion Betterment Association in New York
  • February 1941 --Appointed Assistant Director of the first American Red Cross Blood Bank (Presbyterian Hospital, New York) and Assistant Director of Blood Procurement for the National Research Council, in charge of blood for use by the U.S. Army and Navy
  • April 1941 --Certified a diplomate of the American Board of Surgery, returned to Howard University School of Medicine
  • October 1941 --Appointed professor and Head of the Department of Surgery at Howard University, and chief surgeon at Freedmen's Hospital, certified as an examiner for the American Board of Surgery
  • 1944-46 --Chief of Staff, Freedmen's Hospital
  • 1944 --Received the NAACP's Spingarn Medal for work on the British and American blood plasma projects
  • 1946 --Elected fellow of International College of Surgeons
  • 1946-48 --Medical Director, Freedmen's Hospital
  • 1949 --Consultant to U.S. Army Surgeon General's Office, part of a team to assess health care in post-war Europe
  • 1950 --Died April 1 of injuries received in car accident near Burlington, North Carolina