Wendell Harrison Phillips (November 19, 1934 – January 29, 1993) was an American politician who served in the Maryland House of Delegates and was the first African American chairman of the

Baltimore City Delegation The Baltimore City Delegation refers to the delegates who are elected from districts in Baltimore to serve in the Maryland House of Delegates in the United States. By 1983, the Baltimore City Delegation had 27 members, 3 each from 9 districts ...

. Phillips was one of three delegates serving the 41st legislative district, which lies in the central, northwest section of Baltimore City.

Background

Delegate Phillips was born in Brooklyn, New York. His family moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at an early age. He was baptized at the Carrone Baptist church and attended Westinghouse High School, both in Pittsburgh. He earned a B.S. from Virginia Union University, attended

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ...

and received his M.Div. from Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School. He was an ordained clergyman and founding pastor of the Heritage United Church of Christ in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...

from 1964 to 1993. Phillips served on the U.S. Civil Rights Commission Advisory Board from 1968 to 1970. He was the President, Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance in Baltimore and a delegate to the First Conference of Christians, Israelis, and Palestinians in 1976. Phillips is a past president of the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

of Rochester, New York and active in the civil rights movement.

Family

Phillips married the former Dorothy Allen of Rochester, New York on June 11, 1960, the couple had one son, Wendell Fitzgerald Phillips who also served in the Maryland General Assembly.

In the Legislature

Phillips was a member of the House of Delegates from 1979 to 1987 and a member of its Constitutional and Administrative Law Committee. He was also a member of the Joint Committee On Legislative Ethics. Although he was the chairman of the

, the motorcycle-riding Phillips initially had a stormy relationship with then Baltimore mayor William Donald Schaefer. As delegation chairman, Phillips was responsible for "pushing" the legislation in Annapolis that Schaefer thought was important for Baltimore. Phillips, the consummate bridge builder, knew that for Baltimore City to truly benefit from effective leadership, he and Schaefer had to find a way to work together for the betterment of Baltimore's entire citizenry.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Wendell H. 1934 births 1993 deaths Members of the Maryland House of Delegates African-American state legislators in Maryland American Christian clergy Politicians from Baltimore Virginia Union University alumni Pennsylvania State University alumni 20th-century American legislators 20th-century American clergy 20th-century African-American politicians 20th-century Maryland politicians African-American men in politics