Samuel Ford McGill

Samuel Ford McGill (January 1815 – June 26, 1871) was a Liberian medical doctor and politician who served as governor of Maryland in Liberia from 1851 to 1854. Born free in Baltimore, Maryland, he emigrated to Liberia in 1826.

Early life and education

Samuel Ford McGill was born in January 1815 in Baltimore, Maryland, to parents George R. and Angelina R. McGill. His father was born into slavery but was later freed. Samuel was the couple's eldest son. In 1826, Samuel emigrated to Liberia along with his parents.

In the fall of 1835, George contacted Moses Sheppard, a former member of the Board of Governors of the Maryland State Colonization Society, to ask for assistance in raising funds for Samuel to attend medical school in the United States for him to practice medicine in Liberia. Sheppard gathered a network to try and help Samuel, and together they got him a position at Washington Medical College in Baltimore. Sheppard attempted to warn Samuel about the racism in America, as he had grown up ignorant to it in Liberia. In November 1836, Samuel began to attend lectures at Washington Medical College, but by the next month, white students had organized and protested for his expulsion. He was expelled before the end of 1836. McGill was the first African-American to earn a medical degree. Later, in 1854, Samuel McGill joined his brothers Urias, James, and R. S. McGill into a trading firm called McGill Brothers. The firm was one of Liberia's most prominent commercial endeavors in its early years.

Personal life McGill was married twice. He had seven children with his first wife, and three children with his second.

Death McGill died on June 26, 1871.