Maud Anna Berry Fuller (October 7, 1868 - January 26, 1972), also known as M. A. B. Smith and M. A. B. Fuller, was an American educator and a leader in the

Baptist church Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

. She was the founder and the editor of the ''Woman's Helper'', a national newspaper. Fuller served for 41 years as the president of the National Baptist Convention's Women's Auxiliary.

Biography

Maud Anna Berry was born in

Lockhart, Texas Lockhart is a city and the county seat of Caldwell County, Texas, United States. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 14,379. History The city of Lockhart is named after Byrd Lockhart, an assistant surveyo ...

on October 7, 1868. She was the daughter of Hugh and Anna Berry. She attended Tillotson College and then went on to Guadalupe College. Berry went on to teach for some time in

Seguin, Texas Seguin ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Guadalupe County, Texas, United States; as of the 2020 census, its population was 29,433. Its economy is primarily supported by a regional hospital, as well as the Schertz-Seguin Local Government C ...

. She later taught in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

and in other Texas cities. Before 1913, Berry used the married name Mrs. M. A. B. Smith. At this time, she was the corresponding secretary of the Women's Auxiliary, General Baptist State Convention of Texas and ran the Missionary Training School of Guadalupe. Smith married William Handy Fuller in 1914, taking his last name. They were together until his death in 1941. Later, in 1932, they would purchase and run the N.W. Rhambo Funeral Parlor and a funeral home. The Fullers were known for taking in orphans and providing education for young people and educated them both at her home and abroad. Margaret Taylor Simms, was orphaned at 13 and came to live with Fuller. Simms would go on to work at Fisk as a dean. Maude Fuller George of

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

graduated from the Florida Normal and Industrial Institute in 1943. She became the secretary to the Woman's Auxiliary of the National Baptist Convention in 1916 and then became president in 1928. She wrote literature for

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

, including ''Guides for Home and Foreign Missionary Societies''. She also founded and edited the national newspaper, the ''Woman's Helper''. Fuller raised the money to build a mission in

in 1944. She went on several missions to

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, including the one that secured the land for the permanent mission in Liberia. She also gave speeches and spoke about her missionary work around the country. In 1954, she was given an honorary humanities degree and a doctorate from the Union Baptist Theological Seminary. Fuller retired as the president of the Woman's Auxiliary of the National Baptist Convention in 1968 and became the president

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

. Fuller died on January 26, 1972, in her home in Lockhart. She is buried in Austin in the Evergreen Cemetery. She was fondly called "Mother Fuller" or "Aunt Maude" by people who knew her. The prayer room of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Austin is named after Fuller.

References

External links

Recipes by M.A.B. Fuller
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuller, Maude A. B. 1868 births 1972 deaths African-American missionaries African-American educators People from Austin, Texas People from Lockhart, Texas Huston–Tillotson University alumni Baptist missionaries from the United States Female Christian missionaries Educators from Texas American women educators African-American centenarians American centenarians Women centenarians 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women