Young, Patricia

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Remembering Harry Augustus Cole \u2749

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REMEMBERING Harry Augustus Cole' 49 BY PATRICIA YOUNG A s the first black Assistant Attorney General in Baltimore and the first African American to hold a Maryland State Senate seat, the H on. H any Augustus Cole led a distinguished civil rights journey throughout his life. In a letter to his wife on his pass ing on Februaty 14, U.S. Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes remat'ked : "Judge Cole's accomplishments as a pioneer and trailblazer in the political, judicial and racial histOry of our state have inspired a generation of leaders to emulate his determina-tion and standards." It seems that Cole was destined to be a leader. An ordi-naIY man, the youngest of five child ren, Cole was known as a "man of the people." Like Rosa Parks, who this June received the Congressional Gold M edal of H onor for her role in initiat-ing desegregation for the nation, Cole integrated the Malyland State Senate, the Attorney General 's Office, the Maryland AdvisOlY Committee to the United States C ivil Rights Commission, the Charles Center Complex and Maryland's highest court, the Court of Appeals. T hese great acts originated from humble beginnings. Educated in the Baltimore City Public School System, Cole graduated from Frederick Douglass High School in 1938 . Knowing he wanted to pursue higher education, but having limited means to do so, Cole worked for one year wai ting tables atld shining shoes to earn the $69 admission fee to Morgan State College. His years at Morgan shaped the type of man he would become in his profess ional career: a leader and activist. At Morgan, Cole held the office of president of the Student Council as weLl as of the Debating Society. H e served as pres ident for his junior class atld was founder and editOr-in-chief of the Spokesman, the campus student newspaper. Cole was inducted into Kappa M u National H onor Society and was valedictOrian of his 1943 class, graduating magna cum laude. Unable to attend his commencement exercises because he was called to serve in the Army for two years during World W at· II, Cole received an honorary dischat'ge in 1946, as first lieutenant. T hree years later, Cole graduated from the Schoo l of Law, mat'k-ing the beginning of h is tireless work on behalf of the citizens of Bal timore. H e concentrated his effo rts in criminal law and civil rights, offering his services pro bono to those unable to afford other-wise. Cole's political career was sparked by the need to fi ght for civil rights, and his determination to correct wrongs was matched by his success in doing so. In 1950, Cole ran unsuccessfully for the House of Delegates; likewise a year later for the C ity CowlCil. T hough he JD MAGAZINE FALL 1999 26 did serve as Justice of the Peace and Substitute Magistrate, it wasn't until he was ap pointed Assistant Attorney General in 1953 that his mission was set in a flurry of activity. From 1954 to 1958, Cole served in the Marylatld State Senate. In 1967, then-Gov. Spi ro T. Agnew appointed Cole to the M unicipal Court of the C ity of Baltimore. In 1968, Gov. Agnew appointed Cole to a 15-year term on the Supreme Bench, now known as the C ircuit Court. In 1977, Cole was na.t11ed to the state's highest court, the M aly latld Court of Appeals, by acting Gov. Blai r Lee III. From then until he accepted mandatOry retirement in 199 1, Cole contin ued to fight the fight of the "li ttle man." One of Cole's greatest honors was to be the fi rst alumnus of Morgan State U niversity appointed chairman of its Board of Regents in 1995 . He served until his death . H atTY Augustus Cole is survived by his wife of 42 years, Doris Freeland Cole; three daughters, Susan Cole Hill, H arriett Cole Chi nsee, and Stephan ie Cole Hill; his sister D r. Pearl Cole Brackett, and tvvo gratldchildren. 

https://digitalcommons.law.umaryland.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1385&amp;context=jd

Remembering Harry Augustus Cole \u2749

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