Born: February 20, 1913, in Woodruff, South Carolina.
Education: Stephens-Lee High School, Asheville, North
Carolina; A.B., Morehouse College; B.D., Union Theological Seminary.
Spouse: Jeanetta Scott, married 1936; two
children.
In education:
Principal, Doggett's Grove School, Forest City, North Carolina, 1935-38.
Principal, Waynesville School, Waynesville, North Carolina, 1938.
In ministry:
Pastor, New Bethel Baptist Church, Asheville, North Carolina, 1936-38.
Pastor, Friendship Baptist Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, 1938-47.
Chaplain, Winston-Salem Teachers College, 1941-44.
Pastor, Friendship Baptist Church, New York City, 1947-63.
Senior pastor, Second Baptist Church, Los Angeles, 1963-85.
American Baptist Convention, president, 1969-70.
Gathering, president, c. 1979.
Morehouse College, chairman, board of trustees, 1977-present.
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), New York branch vice president.
North Carolina Baptist State Convention, executive secretary, 1945-47.
Operation PUSH (People United to Save Humanity).
Progressive National Baptist Convention, president, 1976-78.
Protestant Council, vice president, c. 1964.
University of Southern California, community affairs assistant to the president, 1973-84.
Honorary degree, Shaw University, 1956.
Honorary degree, Morehouse College, 1963.
Honorary LL.D., University of Southern California, 1972.
Honorary degree, Virginia Union University, 1972.