[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 89 (Friday, May 26, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1149]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                IN REMEMBRANCE OF DR. ULYSSES MASON, JR.

                                 ______


                           HON. LOUIS STOKES

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 25, 1995
  Mr. STOKES. Mr. Speaker, recently, the Greater Cleveland community 
mourned the passing of Dr. Ulysses Mason, Jr., a highly respected local 
physician. Dr. Mason passed away on May 13, 1995, at the age of 86. 
During his lifetime, he was not only an outstanding doctor, but he was 
an individual who was committed and fought to achieve racial justice.
  Dr. Mason began his rise to prominence in 1938 when he scored third 
among the 112 doctors who passed the Ohio medical examination. Early in 
his career, Dr. Mason fought for the establishment of a nonsegregated 
medical facility where patients could be admitted without reference to 
color. His dream became reality with the formation of Forest City 
Hospital. When the hospital opened its doors in 1957, it was the first 
facility in the city to offer black doctors full participation in its 
operation.
  Mr. Speaker, as a result of the Dr. Mason's efforts, racial barriers 
in other hospitals eroded, and black physicians were placed in medical 
settings where they could learn and grow. During his career, Dr. Mason 
also served as president of the medical staff at MetroHealth, becoming 
the first black physician in the area to hold such a post.
  We will remember Dr. Mason as an individual who paved the way so that 
others could achieve in the field of medicine. For many years prior to 
my coming to the U.S. Congress, Dr. Mason served as my physician. He 
was an individual who was devoted to his work and the community. I 
recall that he also gave freely of his time and energy.
  Mr. Speaker, just recently the Plain Dealer newspaper highlighted Dr. 
Mason's contributions to our community. I want to share the newspaper 
article with my colleagues. I also take this opportunity to again 
extend my condolences to Dr. Mason's wife, Melbahu, and his family. He 
was a doctor and civil rights pioneer who will never be forgotten.
                 [From the Plain Dealer, May 17, 1995]

                Dr. Ulysses Mason, Civil Rights Activist

                           (By Richard Peery)

       Cleveland.--Dr. Ulysses G. Mason Jr. was a highly regarded 
     physician who fought for racial justice. He led the formation 
     of Forest City Hospital to provide a place where black 
     physicians and patients would be welcome without 
     consideration of color. The hospital was open for more than 
     20 years, during which black doctors and patients obtained 
     greater acceptance in other area hospitals.
       Dr. Mason died Saturday at Cleveland Clinic Hospital. He 
     was 86.
       He was born in Birmingham, Ala. His father, who was also a 
     physician, sent him to public schools in Chicago because of 
     better educational opportunities there.
       Dr. Mason graduated from Amherst College in Amherst, Mass., 
     in 1929 and from the medical school of the University of 
     Chicago in 1936.
       He served his internship at Cleveland's City Hospital, now 
     MetroHealth Medical Center. He scored third among the 112 
     doctors who passed the Ohio medical examination in 1938.
       Dr. Mason also served a residency in internal medicine at 
     the hospital when the wards and dining rooms for patients and 
     staff were segregated by race. In 1939, he took the first 
     steps toward establishing a new, nonsegregated medical 
     facility ``where Negro patients can be admitted without 
     question to color.''
       He circulated a letter to other black physicians asking for 
     their support. The late Dr. Middleton Lambright Sr. became 
     one of his strongest backers.
       ``Black doctors didn't have a medical setting they could 
     call their own where they could learn and grow,'' Dr. Mason 
     said in an interview years later.
       Dr. Mason was president of the Forest City Hospital 
     Association when the new hospital opened in the Glenville 
     neighborhood in 1957. The 103-bed modern general hospital was 
     the first in the city to offer black doctors full 
     participation in its operation.
       There had been opposition in the black community, including 
     some from the NAACP, because of fears that the hospital would 
     lead to increased segregation in the rest of the medical 
     community. But the opposite occurred. Racial barriers in 
     other hospitals eroded.
       Dr. Mason was named president of the medical staff at 
     MetroHealth in 1960. It was said to have been the first such 
     office held by a black doctor at any area hospital other than 
     Forest City.
       He also served on the staff of Mt. Sinai Hospital.
       Other positions that Dr. Mason held included service on the 
     boards of the Glenville YMCA, Cleveland Academy of Medicine, 
     Cleveland Area Heart Society, Anti-Tuberculosis League and 
     the advisory board of the Maternal Health Association.
       He was a clinical instructor and assistant clinical 
     professor at Case Western Reserve University School of 
     Medicine until 1980.
       He also served on the board of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
       Dr.Mason is survived by his wife, Melbahu T.; and sons, Dr. 
     Ulysses G. III of Denver, Bryant S. of New York City and Paul 
     J. of Arlington, Va.
       A memorial service will be at 3 p.m. Friday at the Church 
     of the Convenant, 11205 Euclid Ave.
       Arrangements are being handled by E.F. Boyd & Son Funeral 
     Home of Cleveland.
     

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