Violet A. Johnson

Violet A. Johnson (1870 – November 21, 1939) was an American civic leader and suffragist.[1]

Violet A. Johnson
The face of an African-American woman with dark skin and hair; her hair is dressed in a bouffant updo, away from her face. She is wearing a dark dress.
Born1870
Wilmington, North Carolina
DiedNovember 21, 1939
Summit, New Jersey
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Civic leader, suffragist

Early life

Johnson was born in Wilmington, North Carolina.[1] She became a domestic servant for the John Eggers family in the early 1890s, first in New York, then in Summit, New Jersey in 1897 where the family relocated.[2]

Community work and suffrage

Johnson served as a housekeeper to the Eggers family for 45 years.[3] In the late 1890s, she also organized a Bible study group that became Summit's first African-American church, Fountain Baptist Church.[4] At the church, Johnson was founder and president of the missionary society and president of the Deaconess Board, among other leadership roles.[1][5][6] By joining the all-white New Jersey Women's Suffrage Association (NJWSA), Johnson's leadership helped transform New Jersey's women's suffrage movement into a multi-racial movement.[7][8]

During World War I, she organized black women and girls for war relief work, and kept the clubs going after the war. After suffrage was won in 1920, she organized voter registration campaigns, and gave speeches on behalf of candidates she endorsed.[1]

In the late 1920s Johnson established the Girls Industrial Home, a school for training African-American women and girls for domestic work.[2] She was a founder and officer of the Summit chapter of the NAACP, and served as a trustee of the National Training School for Women and Girls in Washington, D.C. She was also active in the Federation of Colored Women's Clubs of New Jersey, as chair of its anti-lynching campaign.[1][3]

Personal life

Johnson died in 1939, in Summit, New Jersey, aged 69 years.[3] Florence Spearing Randolph officiated at her funeral service, at the church Johnson founded.[7]

References
  1. Adams, Betty Livingston. "Biographical Sketch of Violet A. Johnson, 1870-1939" Alexander Street, Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920.
  2. Collier-Thomas, Bettye; Franklin, V.P. (2001). Sisters in the Struggle: African American Women in the Civil Rights-Black Power Movement. New York: New York University Press. pp. 24–25.
  3. "Miss Johnson, Church Founder, Dies in Summit". The Courier-News. 1939-11-24. p. 14. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. Kurlander, Karen (June 11, 2018). "Summit Council Approves Placement of Fountain Baptist Historical Marker". Tap Into Summit. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  5. Deweese, Charles W. (2005). Women Deacons and Deaconesses: 400 Years of Baptist Service. Mercer University Press. p. 75. ISBN 978-0-86554-438-3.
  6. Collier-Thomas, Bettye (2010-02-02). Jesus, Jobs, and Justice: African American Women and Religion. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. pp. 281–282. ISBN 978-0-307-59305-4.
  7. Adams, Betty (2016). Black Women's Christian Activism: Seeking Social Justice in a Northern Suburb. New York: NYU Press. p. 59. ISBN 9780814745465.
  8. "Four Things You Need to Know About Drew Alum's New Book". Drew. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
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