John Albert Williams facts for kids

John Albert Williams (born February 28, 1866 – died February 4, 1933) was an important leader in Omaha, Nebraska. He was a minister, a journalist, and worked hard for equal rights.

John Albert Williams was born to a father who had escaped slavery. He used his voice from the church and in newspapers to talk about civil rights, fairness, and getting along with everyone. He was a respected leader in Omaha's black community and in the Episcopal Church in Omaha and Nebraska.

Early Life and Education

John Albert Williams was born on February 28, 1866, in London, Ontario, Canada. His mother was Adaline D'Or, and his father was Henry Williams. Henry was a slave from Virginia who found freedom by traveling the Underground Railroad to London. Adaline had both French-Canadian and black family roots. John was one of nine children in his family.

When John was 11, his family moved to Detroit. There, he went to Sunday school taught by Father Worthington, who later became a bishop in Omaha. John was also good friends with the famous actor Richard Berry Harrison. This friendship lasted their whole lives. Because Father Worthington recommended him, John went to Seabury Divinity School in Faribault, Minnesota. He finished his studies there on June 3, 1891.

Family and Personal Life

On June 27, 1901, John Albert Williams married Lucinda Gamble. Lucinda was the daughter of William R. Gamble. She made history as the first African-American teacher in the Omaha Public Schools, teaching from 1899 to 1905.

John and Lucinda had three children: a son named Worthington (named after the bishop) and two daughters, Catherine and Dorothy E. Their daughter Dorothy was the first black student to graduate from the University of Nebraska-Omaha on June 5, 1924.

John's mother passed away on June 18, 1910. Later in life, John had a minor stroke in 1929. On February 1, 1933, he had a heart attack and passed away a few days later on February 4, 1933. His funeral was held at Trinity Cathedral in Omaha, and he was buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery.

His Work as a Minister

John Albert Williams became a deacon on June 11, 1891, at St. Barnabas Church in Omaha. He became a priest in October of that same year at St. Mathias Church. He was ordained with two other men, Irving P. Johnson and Paul Matthews, who later became bishops themselves.

In 1878, a church called St. Philip, the Deacon, was started in Omaha. By 1890, only 17 people were left in the church. John Albert Williams began working with the congregation in 1891. By 1893, the church had grown to over 40 members, and a new building was built. Bishop Worthington's wife, Amelia T. Worthington, helped pay for the new church.

Williams quickly became very successful and well-known across the country. He was even asked to lead St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. in both 1895 and 1904. He was considered one of the most famous priests in the Episcopal Church. In 1929, he was honored by being added to the Episcopal Church's Order of the Sangreal. He was also very smart, knowing Latin and Greek, and even taught these subjects at Creighton University. He received a special doctorate degree from Seabury in 1929.

Within the church, he held many important jobs. He was an assistant secretary, secretary-registrar, and even the historian for his church area. For 12 years, he edited the church's magazine, The Crozier. He was considered for a bishop position in Haiti in 1919 and for another missionary bishop role in 1922, but he was not chosen for either. He was known for his thoughtful sermons and for not liking too much emotion in religious services.

Fighting for Civil Rights

John Albert Williams was very active in the fight for civil rights in Omaha. On September 20, 1894, Ida B. Wells, a famous anti-lynching activist, came to Omaha. In December 1894, the Anti-Lynching League was started in Omaha, and Williams became its president. In this role, he often worked to calm the black community during times of racial tension, like during a labor dispute in August 1895.

He was also a member of the National Afro-American League in Omaha. He even ran for a spot on the Omaha Board of Education. He was part of the Negro Press Association and was chosen as its secretary when the group met in Omaha in August 1898.

In August 1906, black community members in Omaha formed the "Progressive League of Douglas County," with Williams as president. This group worked to get black leaders, like Millard F. Singleton, included in political roles. Williams' connections brought many important speakers to Omaha, including Ida B. Wells, Joel Elias Spingarn, and Robert W. Bagnall. After W. E. B. Du Bois visited Omaha in 1919, Williams helped start and lead the state branch of the NAACP.

Williams spoke out on many different issues from the church pulpit and in newspapers. He spoke against "Jim Crow" laws that separated black people. He supported the Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill and was against segregated swimming pools. He was a close friend of Harrison J. Pinkett. With Pinkett, he supported black soldiers involved in the Brownsville affair and those serving in World War I. He was the first black person to be on the governing board of the Omaha Community Chest. He also helped with the Omaha tornado relief commission in 1913, was the treasurer of the Woodson Cultural Center, and was on the board of the Omaha branch of the Urban League.

His Work in Journalism

Cover of The Enterprise, April 4, 1896

John Albert Williams shared his ideas not only from the church but also through newspapers in Omaha and across the country. He often wrote letters to the editor of Omaha's main newspapers, the Omaha World-Herald and the Omaha Bee.

He also worked with black newspapers, especially The Enterprise in Omaha, which was edited by George F. Franklin and later by Thomas P. Mahammitt. In 1915, he started what would become Omaha's biggest black newspaper, the Monitor. The Monitor began as a church paper but grew into a general newspaper for the black community.

The Monitor was an important place for black ideas at the time. It sometimes took strong positions. For example, its pages said that The Bee and another Omaha paper, The Daily News, made racial tensions worse during the riots of 1919 because of their "biased treatment of blacks." The Monitor also supported Marcus Garvey's Universal Negro Improvement Association.

Generally, the Monitor was more moderate in its views. George Wells Parker worked for the Monitor for several years before leaving to start his own paper, the New Era. Parker felt the Monitor was too moderate and wanted to promote more Pan-Africanist ideas. Another journalist who wrote for the Monitor was Lucille Skaggs Edwards. The Monitor stopped publishing in 1929.

Images for kids

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  Cover of The Enterprise, April 4, 1896