Frederick J. Loudin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Frederick Jeremiah Loudin
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Frederick Jeremiah Loudin |
| Born | January 1, 1836 Charlestown, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | November 3, 1904 (aged 68) Ravenna, Ohio, U.S. |
| Genres | Spirituals |
| Occupation(s) | Teacher, singer, choir director, impresario, inventor, entrepreneur, manufacturer |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1872–1902 |
Frederick Jeremiah Loudin (born around 1836 – died November 3, 1904) was a very important leader of the Loudin Jubilee Singers. He was a strong and determined person. This helped him become a spokesperson for the original Jubilee Singers when he toured with them.
Later, he became famous around the world. He led his own group, called the Loudin Jubilee Singers. They traveled and performed in many countries. Frederick Loudin is also known for inventing the Keyring.
Contents
Early Life and Learning
Frederick Loudin was born in Charlestown, Ohio, around 1836. His parents were free, meaning they were not enslaved. They moved to Ohio from Burlington, Vermont to become farmers.
They wanted their son to get a good education. They had given money to Hiram College. But when they learned Frederick couldn't join their program because of his race, they took their children out of the local school. Instead, they sent them to school in Ravenna, Ohio.
Frederick was a very good student. He earned a special seat in his class. Some white parents were upset by this. They pulled their children out of school. They felt their children deserved the special seat more, just because of their skin color.
Frederick kept doing well in school. As a teenager, he started learning to be a printer. He worked for a newspaper that was against slavery. He was asked to lead the writing part of the paper. But Frederick chose to stay a printer. He didn't fully agree with everything the paper's editor believed.
He later found that other white printers didn't want to work with him. This made him sad, so he stopped printing altogether.
A Life of Music
Frederick faced unfair treatment not just in school and work. He joined a Methodist church in Ravenna. But he was not allowed to sing in the choir. This was very disappointing for him. Frederick came from a family of musicians and had a beautiful voice. This experience made him not want to study music formally, even though he loved to sing.
In his early twenties, Loudin moved to Pittsburgh. There, he met and married Harriet C. Johnson. Four years later, they moved to Memphis. Music was a big part of Frederick's life. He taught music, learned to play the organ, and led a choir.
A friend told him about the Fisk Jubilee Singers. Frederick wrote to George White, who was looking for a baritone singer. White came to Memphis to hear Frederick sing. He then invited him to join his choir.
Frederick Loudin was the oldest member of the original Fisk Jubilee Singers. He became good friends with George Leonard White during their tours in Europe. However, he had disagreements with Ella Sheppard and Erastus Milo Cravath, the president of Fisk University. These disagreements were about the singers' right to rest and fair pay.
In 1879, the original Jubilee Singers group broke up. Loudin and White then started a new choir together. They still called it the Fisk Jubilee Singers. They used the name so people would recognize them. But the group was no longer connected to Fisk University.
Later, George White was hurt while leading the group. Frederick Loudin then took over as director. He led the group on a two-year tour across the U.S. and Canada.
World Tours and Success
In 1884, Frederick Loudin started a six-year world tour with his choir. He was the only director of the group. He was very careful about choosing his singers. He checked their backgrounds to make sure they were good people from cultured families.
His group was now made up only of African Americans and run by them. It was very important to Loudin that no one could find fault with his singers. He wanted to show that African Americans were not inferior.
Loudin led his choir to many places. They visited England, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, China, and Japan. Finally, they toured across the Western United States. This tour was a huge success. Frederick and his singers earned enough money to live comfortably when they returned home.
Part of this success was thanks to his wife, Harriet. She had traveled with him since his early days with the Jubilee Singers and helped manage the tours. After returning to his hometown of Ravenna, Ohio, and building a house for his family, Loudin continued to tour with his group for another twelve years.
Beyond Music: Business and Inventions
Besides his busy life as a singer and choir director, Loudin also found time for politics and business. In the 1890s, after his world tour, Loudin owned two shoe manufacturing companies. He also received patents for two inventions.
In 1879 and again in 1893, he was chosen as a delegate for a national meeting of black men. He worked with journalist Ida B. Wells and Frederick Douglass. They pushed for African Americans to be represented at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
Loudin also stayed in touch with Fisk University throughout his life. He sent them updates on his choir's work abroad. He visited the school whenever he could. This was special because he had never been a student at Fisk or any other college.
Loudin's Shoe Company
On November 17, 1892, Frederick Loudin opened the F.J. Loudin Boot and Shoe Manufacturing Company in Ravenna, Ohio. By April 1893, the company had nearly 70 workers. Both white and black people worked there together. This was a very new idea in Ravenna in the 1890s.
The workers made 300 shoes every day under the Loudin brand. The company also had shareholders who were both white and black. However, despite these efforts, the company struggled. Within a year of opening, the company went bankrupt and had to close. During this time, Loudin's Fisk Jubilee Singers were still on tour.
Frederick Loudin was very creative during this period. He patented two inventions for fasteners, showing his inventive mind.
His Final Years
In the fall of 1902, Frederick Loudin had a heart attack while on tour in Scotland. This was almost thirty years after he first joined the Jubilee Singers. He passed away in Ravenna two years later, in 1904.
Images for kids
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Frederick Loudin
