Celebrating Black History Month: Dr. Robert Pannell, OVC 1928

The Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) admitted its first Black students beginning in the 1890s, mostly from commonwealth nations throughout the Caribbean. Over time, the college grew to attract Black students from Canada, the United States and further abroad, including several African nations. While the experience these students had while at the OVC is largely unknown based on available evidence, many came to the OVC already possessing higher education, were strong students, and went on to have significant careers in veterinary medicine. 

Dr. Robert Pannell, a member of the OVC Class of 1928 was the first Black student from the United States to graduate from the OVC. Born in Virginia in 1898, he appears in the OVC’s administrative records as a second-year student beginning in 1925. While the veterinary program was four years, Pannell is only listed as a student for three years, suggesting his prior education may have allowed him to pass over his first year. Pannell came to the OVC with a bachelor’s degree in science from Howard University Washington, D.C., and a diploma in agriculture from the Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia (now Hampton University).  

After graduating in 1928, Pannell left Canada and went to New York State where he worked as a meat inspector, a common occupation for new veterinary graduates. Working for the state in positions like meat inspection provided a steady income while many built practices and/or went into practice with other veterinarians. It is unclear when he returned to his home state of Virginia, but by the time he died at the young age of 43 in 1942, he was working in Staunton, Virginia, as a veterinarian and a pipe fitter. 

The story of Black excellence in the history of the OVC is one that is continually being written. To explore more about Black history at the college, please see a recent exploration of Black student veterinarians who were part of the OVC Class of 1922 here.