William Tecumseh Vernon (July 11, 1871 – July 25, 1944) was an American educator, minister and bishop in the

African Methodist Episcopal Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...

who served as president of Western University beginning in 1896 and

Register of the Treasury The Register of the Treasury was an officer of the United States Treasury Department. In 1919, the office of the Register became the Public Debt Service which, in 1940, became the Bureau of the Public Debt. The Register's duties included filing the ...

from 1906 to 1911.

Biography

William Tecumseh Vernon was born to former slaves north of

Lebanon, Missouri Lebanon is a city in and the county seat of Laclede County in Missouri. The population was 14,474 at the time of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Laclede County. The Lebanon Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Laclede County. Hi ...

.Angela Hancock and Michelle Stamps, "'WE'VE STILL GOT SOME STRUGGLING TO GO'"
''Bittersweet'', Vol. VI, No. 3, Spring 1979, Springfield-Greene County Library, accessed 18 June 2012 Formerly held by the Vernon family, his father and the family took their surname. His parents likely named their son after the Union general

William Tecumseh Sherman William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recognition for his com ...

, a hero during the Civil War. William went to school in Lebanon.

Career

After graduation, Vernon taught at the Institute for several years. In 1896 at the age of 25, he was ordained as a minister in the

. That year he was appointed president of Western University, a historically black university near Kansas City supported by the A.M.E. Conference. He brought new energy to the school, gaining legislative support to add industrial education to the school. To support the new programs in training for agriculture and mechanical trades, he had facilities constructed, including new dormitories. Vernon was a lifelong proponent of education: William Tecumseh Vernon (Engraved Signature)

William Tecumseh Vernon (Engraved Signature)

Vernon achieved prominence as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

as president of Western University, and in 1906, he was appointed by President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

. All US currency printed during his tenure carries the signature of William T. Vernon. He was briefly reappointed by

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

in 1910, but the president needed the position for his own patronage. Vernon accepted a federal appointment as the Supervisor of Indian and Negro Schools on a reservation in Oklahoma, newly admitted as a state combining the

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

and Oklahoma territories. In 1912, the A.M.E. appointed him as president (1912–1915) of their affiliated

Campbell College Campbell College located in Belfast, Northern Ireland and founded in 1894 comprises a preparatory school department (junior age) and a senior Northern Ireland 'Voluntary Grammar' school, the latter meaning, in terms of provision of education, a ...

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the capital of and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, along with Raymond. The city had a population of 153,701 at t ...

. Following that, Vernon returned to the pastorate when called by Avery Chapel in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

, where he served (1916-1920). After being consecrated as a bishop in 1920,"All AME Bishops"
AME Conference Vernon soon left for

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

, where he worked as a

missionary 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 ...

in the

Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal. * South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...

district for four years. The AME Church had been successful in building congregations among the indigenous peoples in South Africa. As early as the late nineteenth century, it was helping students come to the United States for college. At the 1932 AME General Conference, members brought charges against three bishops: William Tecumseh Vernon, Joshua Jones, and William Decker Johnson. Ultimately, Vernon and Jones were suspended from their duties for misuse of conference funds. In addition, there were complaints that Vernon had been too close to some of his women parishioners. This was at a period when there had been several scandals among senior clergy in the AME and other churches, and its prestige was declining. In 1933 during the Great Depression, after the A.M.E. Church withdrew its support from Western University, the state provided funding. The governor appointed Vernon as head of the industrial department. He appointed a strong faculty and succeeded in getting its accreditation restored before stepping down in 1936.

Books

Vernon wrote two books on race and politics: * ''The Upbuilding of a Race: or The Rise of a Great People'', a compilation of sermons, addresses and writings on education, the race question and public affairs (1904) * ''What the American Negro expects of World-wide Democracy: A statement of the Negro's Case and Cause'' (1919)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vernon, William Tecumseh African Methodist Episcopal bishops 20th-century Methodist bishops Methodist missionaries in South Africa American Methodist missionaries 1944 deaths 1871 births Kansas Republicans Oklahoma Republicans Mississippi Republicans Tennessee Republicans American expatriates in South Africa