Z. D. Lewis
Z. D. Lewis | |
|---|---|
.png) Portrait of Lewis in 1897 newspaper | |
| Born | 1859 |
| Died | 1926 (aged 66–67) |
Z. D. Lewis (1859–1926) was an influential Baptist church leader and the first president of the Southern Aid and Insurance Company based in Richmond, Virginia.[1] It was the oldest African American owned insurance company in the U.S. when it was acquired by another agency in 1977. The company wrote insurance for industrial life, accident and sick benefits insurance and was licensed in New Jersey, Virginia and District of Columbia, and had offices in Alexandria, Bristol, Charlottesville, Danville, Farmville, Fredericksburg, Lynchburg, Newport News, Norfolk, Petersburg, Portsmouth, Richmond, Roanoke, Saluda, Suffolk, Winchester, Virginia; and Washington, D.C.[1] Lewis was politically influential and became involved in leadership disputes within the African American Baptist community of Richmond.[2]
Lewis was pastor of the Second Baptist Church of Richmond. He was chosen by organizers of the insurance company to lead it.[3] In 1898, he delivered what Lucy Coles would describe as a fiery speech opposing her attempt to collect funds for a mission building in Liberia. Coles was a prominent American missionary and the mother of Elizabeth Coles Bouey. Lewis was at the time moderator of the Richmond Minister's Conference.[4]
References
- ^ a b "Guide to the Records of the Southern Aid Society of Virginia 1893-1977". The Library of Virginia. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
- ^ Gavins, Raymond (1 January 1977). The Perils and Prospects of Southern Black Leadership: Gordon Blaine Hancock, 1884-1970. Duke University Press. p. 25. Retrieved 14 January 2018 – via Internet Archive.
Z.d. lewis.
- ^ "Guide to the Records of the Southern Aid Society of Virginia 1893-1977". Lva.virginia.gov. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
- ^ Martin, Sandy (1989). Black Baptists and African Missions: The Origins of a Movement, 1880-1915. Mercer University Press. ISBN 9780865543539. Retrieved 4 June 2018 – via Google Books.
External links
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