Butler R. Wilson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Butler Roland Wilson
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Butler R. Wilson ca. 1916
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| Born | July 22, 1861 Greensboro, Georgia, U.S.
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| Died | October 31, 1939 (aged 78) Boston, U.S.
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| Resting place | Forest Hills Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Atlanta University Boston University School of Law |
| Known for | |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Evans Wilson |
| Children | 6 |
Butler Roland Wilson (1861–1939) was an attorney, civil rights activist, and humanitarian based in Boston, Massachusetts. Born in Georgia, he came to Boston for law school and lived there for the remainder of his life. For over fifty years, he worked to combat racial discrimination in Massachusetts. He was one of the first African-American members of the American Bar Association. Wilson was a founding member and president of the Boston branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
Early life
Butler Roland Wilson was born in Greensboro, Georgia, on July 11, 1861, to Dr. John R. and Mary Jackson Wilson, free people of color. His father was a well-known physician and civic leader in the Atlanta area. Wilson attended Atlanta University, a historically black college, where he was captain of the varsity baseball team and was voted class orator. He received his B.A. degree in 1881 and M.A. in 1884.
Against the wishes of his parents, who wanted him to become a minister, Wilson traveled to Boston to earn his LL.B. at the Boston University School of Law. There he befriended the attorney and civil rights activist Archibald H. Grimké, and began writing for Grimké's Republican newspaper, The Hub. He graduated with honors in 1884, and was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar Association the same year.
Marriage and family
On June 27, 1894, Wilson and Mary P. Evans were married by Archibald Grimké's brother, the Reverend Francis James Grimké. The couple moved to 13 Rutland Square in Boston's South End, where they raised their six children. Mary Wilson became a well-known activist in her own right; she was a founding member of the Women's Service Club, NAACP Boston branch.
Death and legacy
Wilson died of pneumonia in Boston on October 31, 1939, aged 79. His home at 13 Rutland Square is marked with a Heritage Guild plaque.
Early in his career, Wilson was instrumental in getting the city to erect a monument to Crispus Attucks and the other victims of the Boston Massacre. The bronze and granite monument stands on Boston Common, near Tremont Street between Avery Street and West Street.
