Charles DeWitt Watts

Dr. Charles DeWitt Watts
Charles DeWitt Watts
Born	September 21, 1917 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Died	July 12, 2004(2004-07-12) (aged 86) Durham, North Carolina, U.S.
Resting place	Beechwood Cemetery, Fayetteville Street, Durham 35°57′32″N 78°54′47″W / 35.959°N 78.913°W / 35.959; -78.913
Alma mater	Morehouse College Howard University College of Medicine
Occupation	Surgeon
Years active	1948–1975 (as a surgeon)
Notable work	Lincoln Community Health Center
Spouse	Constance Merrick Watts (1945–2004; his death)
Children	4

Charles DeWitt Watts (September 21, 1917 – July 12, 2004) was an African-American surgeon and activist for the poor. Watts was the first surgeon of African-American ancestry in North Carolina. Earning his medical degree in 1943 from Howard University College, he was the first African-American board-certified surgeon to serve in North Carolina. After surgical training at Freedman's Hospital in Washington, D.C., in 1949, he moved to Durham, North Carolina, in 1950 and established a clinic to provide access to medical services for the poor. Breaking the social customs of racial obstacles, he advocated for certification of African-American medical students. He also became a member of many professional colleges including the National Academy of Science's Institute of Medicine and the American College of Surgeons.^[1][2] He served as chief of surgery at Durham's Lincoln Hospital and was later one of the key figures in converting it to the Lincoln Community Health Center, a low-priced clinic for the poor.