Ernest Everett Just
Throwback Thursday Snapshot Historical Snapshots May 30, 2025 Ernest Everett Just, circa 1920 The years of his life were often experienced with unkind treatment, as he faced much discrimination for being black. But through the challenges, Ernest Everett Just kept finding opportunities, and in doing so, became an instrumental part of scientific research. Born in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1883, Ernest was only four years old when his father and grandfather passed away, making his mother financially responsible for him and two younger siblings. His mother, who also experienced the loss of her two eldest children from disease only a couple of years prior to losing her husband, supported the family by teaching during the school year and working in phosphate mines during summertime. Despite her long hours and heavy burdens, she took time to teach Ernest after a serious bout of dysentery left him needing to relearn how to read and write. At the start of his teens, Ernest’s mother en...