About: William Augustus Hinton

William Augustus Hinton (December 15, 1883 – August 8, 1959) was an American bacteriologist, pathologist and educator. He was the first Black professor in the history of Harvard University. A pioneer in the field of public health, Hinton developed a test for syphilis which, because of its accuracy, was used by the United States Public Health Service. In 1975, the Massachusetts legislature made what had become known as the "Hinton Laboratory" in the scientific community official, passing a bill to rename the state laboratory the "Dr. William A. Hinton Laboratory." In 2019, Hinton's portrait was placed in Harvard Medical School's Waterhouse Room, a room previously dominated by the portraits of former Harvard Medical School Deans, all of whom were white.