David Irvin Scott, pharmacist denied entry to Maryland due to his race, dies

Jacques Kelly, Baltimore Sun
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David Irvin Scott, a pharmacist for the old Read’s drug stores who was denied admission to the University of Maryland because of his race, died of heart failure May 3 at MedStar Union Memorial Hospital. He was 94 and lived in North Baltimore at The Rotunda.

Born in Baltimore and raised on Franklin Street, he was the son of Frederick I. Scott, a postman, and Rebecca Waller Scott, a homemaker.

His maternal grandfather was the Rev. Garnett Russell Waller, a founding member of W.E.B Dubois’ Niagara Movement, which led to the founding of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The Rev. Waller became the first president of the Baltimore chapter of the NAACP.

Mr. Scott attended Booker T. Washington Junior High School and was a skilled tennis player. In 1947, he won the Baltimore City Colored Intermediate Tennis Championship.

“He was a lifelong newspaper reader and got in trouble at Douglass for reading a paper in math class,” said his wife, Norma Walker Scott.

In 1948, after graduating from Frederick Douglass Senior High School, he entered what was then called Howard University’s School of Pharmacy where he earned his degree.

“He attended Howard because the state of Maryland paid his tuition there in order to keep him out of the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, unfortunately a common practice at the time,” said his wife. The University of Maryland did not begin admitting students of color until 1951.

She said he became a pharmacist because as a young man he rode a bike delivering prescriptions throughout the Windsor Hills neighborhood for the old Fibus Drug Store in Walbrook Junction.

Mr. Scott passed both the Washington and Maryland pharmacy boards.

After serving as an Army pharmacist at Fort Knox in Kentucky, he returned to Baltimore where he was a retail pharmacist for 44 years.

His future wife Norma Walker Scott invited him to a Christmas party at a young women’s club. After their first date they had a second date in Washington.

“He was laid back but always had wise information to share. He didn’t say a whole lot, but shared matters of importance when necessary,” said his son, Adam Scott. “He had a great personal character and was there for other people. He was a second father to many of my friends when we were all in school.”

Over the years he worked at the old Read drug store chain and later as it became Rite-Aid. He also worked at the Garwyn Medical Center, East Baltimore Medical Plan, Turner Station’s Village Store and Dickman’s Pharmacy at Edmondson Avenue and Bentalou Street.

“Ironically, David was also appointed to the Task Force on Recruitment and Retention of minority students instituted by the IOTA chapter of Chi Delta Mu fraternity and the University of Maryland at Baltimore,” said his wife.

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He retired three days after the birth of his quadruplet grandchildren, Alexis, Brandon, Christina, and Dominique Scott.

“We needed all hands on deck,” said his wife.

Mr. Scott enjoyed bowling and was a member of the Stag Bridge Club and later the Double Finesse Bridge Club.

He liked to bake and was known for his rum raisin cake.

“At 94, David’s mind and memory were exceptional,” said his son, Adam Scott.

“He possessed a wealth of knowledge about so many things,” said his wife. “He was an avid daily newspaper reader and retained much of what he read.”

A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. May 28 at March Life Tribute Center at 5616 Old Court Road in Windsor Mill.

Survivors include his wife of 62 years, Norma Walker Scott, a Baltimore City Schools speech language pathologist; a daughter, Damita Scott MacFarlane, of Middletown, Delaware; a son, Adam Scott, of Ellicott City; a sister, Patricia Scott Waddy, of Columbia; and seven grandchildren.