Unmarried women without male kin could still wield top power in Black Baptist institutions

Evidence

Nannie Helen Burroughs was never married and was not related in a familial way to any of the men in the National Baptist Convention. An eloquent speaker and organizational genius, she was the corresponding secretary and dynamic force behind the Woman’s Convention. During her first year in office, she reported having labored 365 days, traveled 22,125 miles, delivered 215 speeches, organized 12 societies, written 9,235 letters, and received 4,820 letters. — Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, Righteous Discontent, 733

Categorization

• SHARE: The one-year workload stat — 365 days, 22,125 miles, 215 speeches, 9,235 letters written — is a deliciously specific profile of turn-of-century organizing that a history-of-women’s-work friend would savor.
• XREF: connects to: Separate female institutions gave black Baptist women greater authority — Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, Righteous Discontent: The Women’s…, 389; Women’s collective labor, not just exceptional preachers, powered black Baptist churches — Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, Righteous Discontent: The Women’s…, 40

Broader Connections

• Separate female institutions gave black Baptist women greater authority #qualifies (0.80) — Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, Righteous Discontent, 389
• Women’s collective labor, not just exceptional preachers, powered black Baptist churches #qualifies (0.75) — Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, Righteous Discontent, 40