Merze Tate was a professor, scholar and expert on United States diplomacy.
Background
Mrs. Tate was born on February 6, 1905, in Blanchard, Michigan, United States. She was a daughter of Charles H. and Myrtle Katora (Lett) Tate. Her great-grandparents had migrated to Michigan from Ohio after receiving land through the Homestead Act.
Education
In 1927 Mrs. Tate graduated with Bachelor of Arts degree from Western Michigan University. In 1930 she earned her Master of Arts from Columbia University. She completed her studies at Oxford University, receiving Master of Arts and then Bachelor of Letters in 1935.
In 1977 Merze Tate obtained her Doctor of Laws (honorary) degree from Morgan State University. She received Doctor of Laws (honorary) from Lincoln University in 1978. In 1941 Mrs. Tate got Doctor of Philosophy degree, after finished her studies at Harvard University. Finally, in 1986 she received Doctor of Humane Letters from Harvard University.
From 1927 till 1932 Mrs. Tate served as a teacher Crispus Attucks High School, Indianapolis. After teaching high-school history in Indiana, she accepted a post in 1935 at Barber-Scotia College in Concord, North Carolina, where she also was the dean of women. Between 1936 and 1941 she held the position at Bennett College, and from 1941 to 1942 Merze Tate joined the staff of Morgan State University. From 1942 to 1977, Mrs. Tate was on staff at Howard University in Washington, DC.
Merze Tate was also known to be a writer. Her first book, The Disarmament Illusion — The Movement for a Limitation of Armaments to 1907, was published in 1942.