Lucy F. Farrow (1851–1911) was an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

holiness pastor who was instrumental in the early foundations of

Pentecostalism Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

. She was the first African American person to be recorded as having spoken in tongues, after attending the meetings of

Charles Fox Parham Charles F. Parham (June 4, 1873 – January 29, 1929) was an American preacher and evangelism, evangelist. Together with William J. Seymour, Parham was one of the two central figures in the development and early spread of American Pentecostalis ...

, and is credited for introducing

William J. Seymour William Joseph Seymour (May 2, 1870 – September 28, 1922) was an African-American Holiness movement, holiness preacher who initiated the Azusa Street Revival, an influential event in the rise of the Pentecostal and Charismatic Movement, Charis ...

to this understanding.

Life

Farrow was the niece of the abolitionist

Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 1817 or 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became ...

and born into

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

in 1851. In 1905, when she was pastoring a small

Holiness Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

church in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, she worked for

during his Houston crusade during that summer as a cook, then when Parham's Houston meeting closed, he invited Farrow to accompany them to Kansas as a

governess A governess is a largely obsolete term for a woman employed as a private tutor, who teaches and trains a child or children in their home. A governess often lives in the same residence as the children she is teaching. In contrast to a nanny, th ...

for his children. During this time, she asked her friend

to care for her church in her absence. Through her interactions with Parham, Farrow experienced ongues On her return, she encouraged Seymour to enroll in the Bible College Parham started in January 1906, where he would eventually be convinced of many of Parham's teachings. Later in 1906, when William Seymour became the pastor of a

church in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, he sent for Farrow to join him in what would become known as the

Azusa Street Revival The Azusa Street Revival was a historic series of revival meetings that took place in Los Angeles, California. It was led by William J. Seymour, an African-American preacher. The revival began on April 9, 1906, and continued until roughly 1915. O ...

. She would be known as the "anointed handmaiden" who laid her hands on many who received the Holy Spirit and the gift of ongues Later in 1906, she would travel to Johnsonville, Liberia, and reportedly experienced the ability the gift of xenolalia and spoke the

Kru language The Kru languages are spoken by the Kru people from the southeast of Liberia to the west of Ivory Coast. Classification According to Güldemann (2018), Kru lacks sufficient lexical resemblances and noun class resemblances to conclude a relation ...

, preaching to the

Kru people The Kru, Kroo, Krou or Kuru are a West African ethnic group who are indigenous to western Ivory Coast and eastern Liberia. They migrated and settled along various points of the West African coast, notably Freetown, Sierra Leone, but also the Ivo ...

and spreading the Pentecostal message in Africa. After eventually returning to Los Angeles, then later to Houston, Farrow contracted

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

and died in 1911.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrow, Lucy F. 1851 births 1911 deaths American Pentecostals African-American Christian clergy American Christian clergy 20th-century African-American people

Life

See also

References