Religion / Civil rights & activism / Labor
Charles A. Hill
1893–1970
· Baptist pastor, civil rights and labor activist
Detroit-born pastor of Hartford Memorial Baptist Church (1920–1968) who opened his pulpit to the UAW and led fights for integrated housing and jobs.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Died
Detroit, Michigan
aged 76- Birth name
- Charles Andrew Hill
- Also known as
- Rev. Charles A. Hill
- Detroit years
- 1893–1970
- Field
- Religion, Civil rights & activism, Labor
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Charles Andrew Hill was born in Detroit in 1893 and began his ministry as an assistant pastor at Second Baptist Church under Robert L. Bradby. In 1920 he became the first pastor of the newly founded Hartford Memorial Baptist Church, which he led for almost half a century. In the late 1930s, when most Black clergy in Detroit sided with Henry Ford, Hill broke ranks: he hosted union meetings at his church, backed the UAW's drive to organize the Ford River Rouge complex. During World War II he was a leader of the Double V campaign for victory over fascism abroad and racism at home, fought for integrated public housing such as the Sojourner Truth homes and called for a federal grand jury after the 1943 race riot. He briefly served as president of the Detroit NAACP, pushed Detroit Edison to hire Black workers, and ran for the Common Council and for Congress. He retired in 1968 and died in 1970.
Highlights
- Pastor of Hartford Memorial Baptist Church, 1920–1968
- Hosted UAW meetings for the Ford Rouge organizing drive
- Leader of Detroit's Double V campaign during World War II
- Briefly president of the Detroit NAACP