Moddie Taylor gained distinction early in his career as an associate chemist on the U.S. Manhattan Project , which led to the development of the atomic bomb during World War II. A chemistry professor at Lincoln and later Howard universities, Taylor published a chemistry textbook in 1960 and served as head of the chemistry department at Howard from 1969 to 1976.

Moddie Daniel Taylor was born in Nymph, Alabama, on March 3, 1912, the son of Herbert L. Taylor and Celeste (Oliver) Taylor. His father worked as a postal clerk in St. Louis, Missouri, and it was there that Taylor went to school, graduating from the Charles H. Sumner High School in 1931. He then attended Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri, and graduated with a B.S. in chemistry in 1935 as valedictorian and as a summa cum laude student. He began his teaching career in 1935, working as an instructor until 1939 and then as...