Today's American Red Cross blood program is the result of the efforts of Dr. Charles R. Drew, an African-American blood specialist, surgeon, educator and scientist. His pioneering work in blood collection, plasma processing and transfusion laid the foundation for modern blood banking. The articles and activities below will engage and inform, expanding upon Drew’s contribution to blood science and his unique place in our nation’s history. This resource guide also encourages students to take on further reading and research about Drew and the other men and women responsible for advancing our knowledge of blood and its many life-saving properties.

Articles about Charles Drew

 Find out how Charles Drew became the right man at the right time for the first large-scale blood banking program of the Red Cross.

 Schools across the country are named after Charles Drew.
Read and find out about Charles Drew the educator.

  Portraits of Charles Drew

  Myths and Facts about Dr. Drew:
A True or False Quiz

 First day of issue envelope of the Charles Drew stamp issued by the U.S. Postal Service, June, 3 1981.

Did You Know...?

• That Drew attended Amherst College in Massachusetts, then medical school at Montreal's McGill University in Canada.

• At Amherst College, Drew received an athletic scholarship and was made captain of the school’s track team and winner of the football team's most valuable player award.

• That he made many of his discoveries on blood while doing graduate research at Columbia University in New York City.

• That Drew became the first African American to receive a Doctor of Medical Science degree from Columbia University.

• That he returned to his hometown of Washington, D.C., from the Red Cross blood project in New York and continued to teach the next generation of African American doctors as a professor of surgery at Howard University.

Look carefully at this popular poster from World War II and the map it features above. After completing the readings on Drew’s life and work, write a paragraph to accompany the poster that explains what the U.S. war-time blood program was and why Drew’s research and use of blood plasma was so important to it.

  The World War II Blood Donor Service in Pictures

 Word Search Puzzle

Visit Your Library

• Bertol, Roland. Charles Drew. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1970. 32 pages.
• Love, Spencie. One Blood: The Death and Resurrection of Charles R. Drew. The University of North Carolina Press, 1996. 373 pages. For readers grades 10 and up.
• Mahone-Lonesome, Robyn. Charles Drew: Physician. Philadelphia: Chelsea House, 1990. 111 pages. Part of the “Black Americans of Achievement” series for children ages 9 to 12.
• Schraff, Anne E. Dr. Charles Drew: Blood Bank Innovator. Berkeley Heights, N.J.: Enslow Publishers, Inc. 2003. 112 pages. Part of the African-American Biographies series for 6th grade readers and up.
• Trice, Linda. Charles Drew: Pioneer of Blood Plasma. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000. 121 pages. Part of the “Ideas on Trial” series for young adult readers.
• Whitehurst, Susan. Dr. Charles Drew, Medical Pioneer. Chanhassen, MN: Child’s World, Inc., 2002. 40 pages. Part of the “Journey to Freedom®: The African American Library” series for readers grades 5 and up.

Online Resources

American Red Cross Blood Services
http://www.redcross.org/services/biomed/0,1082,0_320_,00.html

American Red Cross–Blood Donation Games
http://www.givelife2.org/games/default.asp?thisHB=01/23/2007%2008:19:41

Blood Service Milestones of the American Red Cross
http://www.redcross.org/museum/history/bldmilestones.asp

Red Gold: The Epic Story of Blood, produced by PBS
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/redgold/

Blood Groups, Blood Typing and Blood Transfusions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/landsteiner/readmore.html

African Americans in American Red Cross History
http://www.redcross.org/museum/exhibits/aaexhibit_4.asp

Research some of the other early pioneers in blood science:

Karl Landsteiner—Known for his work for establishing blood groups

Oswald Robertson—Established the first known blood bank during World War I

Edwin Joseph Cohn—American biochemist who helped develop the methods of separating plasma proteins into other blood fractions

Kenneth Brinkhous—developed the first effective treatment for hemophilia, made numerous other important discoveries regarding blood clotting.

Edward Shanbrom—a pioneer in the field of blood and plasma sterilization. He was also one of the inventors of the first clinical treatments for hemophilia.