| The ReverendThomas Kilgore Jr. | |
|---|---|
 Kilgore in 1979 | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | Thomas Kilgore Jr. (1913-02-20)February 20, 1913 Woodruff, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Died | February 4, 1998(1998-02-04) (aged 84) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Spouse |
Jeannetta Miriam Scott
(m. 1936) |
| Education | Morehouse College |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Christianity Protestantism |
| Denomination | Baptist |
| Profession | Clergyman |
Thomas Kilgore Jr. was a prominent clergyman, community leader, and human rights activist. He helped organize the March on Washington.
Biography
Kilgore was born in Woodruff, South Carolina. While a freshman at Morehouse College in Atlanta, he attended Ebeneezer Baptist Church, which was headed by the Reverend A. D. Williams, the maternal grandfather of Martin Luther King Jr. It was through this association that he got to know the King family. He first met Martin Luther King when the latter was only 2+1⁄2 years old.
When the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) was founded in the late 1950s, Kilgore managed their New York office. In 1963, he helped organize the March on Washington. Also in 1963, Kilgore became pastor of Second Baptist Church, the oldest black Baptist church in Los Angeles. There he established the first chapter of SCLC west of the Rockies. He led Second Baptist Church until his retirement in 1985.
Kilgore died in Los Angeles on February 4, 1998. He was 84 years old.
References
- ^ Lytle, James (February 16, 1998). "Rev. Thomas Kilgore Jr., Civil Rights Leader, Adviser to Three USC Presidents, Dies". USC. University of Southern California. Archived from the original on February 20, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
- 1913 births
- 1998 deaths
- African-American activists
- 20th-century Baptist ministers from the United States
- Activists for African-American civil rights
- Activists from Georgia (U.S. state)
- Activists from South Carolina
- African-American Baptist ministers
- African-American theologians
- American human rights activists
- American anti-racism activists
- Montgomery bus boycott
- Morehouse College alumni
- American nonviolence advocates
- People from Atlanta
- Baptists from Georgia (U.S. state)
- Baptists from South Carolina
- Clergy from Atlanta