Bahá'í Chronology: search for "louis gregory"

date	event	locations	tags	firsts
1874 6 Jun	Birth of Louis George Gregory, Hand of the Cause of God at Charleston, South Carolina.	South Carolina; United States	Louis Gregory; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths
1909 July 23	Louis George Gregory accepted the Bahá'í Faith after investigating since 1907 when he attended a lecture given by Lua Getsinger. Joseph and Pauline Hannen were his teachers and became friends for life. At the time of his acceptance of the Faith the Washington community was not fully integrated. [Wikipedia] [key]	Washington DC; United States	Louis Gregory; Hands of the Cause
1911 9 Apr c.	Louis Gregory visited Ramleh where ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was staying in preparation for His first visit to Europe. During their first conversation ‘Abdu’l-Bahá immediately cut “to the substance of the issue.” “What of the conflict between the white and colored races?” he asked. “Work for unity and harmony between the races,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá told him. “The colored people must attend all the unity meetings. There must be no distinctions.” [239Days Day 12; SoW Vol 2 No 10 September 8 1911 p5; SYH6] On pilgrimage at the same time were Neville Meakin and another British Bahá'í, Louise Mathew. On the 16th of April the three set sail for Haifa. [SYH3-8] After visiting the Holy sites Louis returned to Cairo and to 'Abdu'l-Bahá who asked him to visit Stuttgart, Paris and London before returning to America. [SYH12-13] [key]	Ramleh (Alexandria); Alexandria; Egypt	Louis Gregory; Abdul-Baha, Life of; Louise Gregory; Abdul-Baha in Egypt
1911 May	Louis Gregory travelled to Stuttgart after his visit with 'Abdu'l-Bahá in Egypt. There he renewed his acquaintance with Alma Knobloch, he had learned of the Faith in the Hannen household. “When he went to Stuttgart,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wrote of him, “although being of black color, yet he shone as a bright light in the meeting of the friends.” [239 Days in America] Members of that community, Miss Alma Knobloch, Mr and Mrs Herrigel and Mr Haiges went to London when 'Abdul-Bahá was visiting that city. When He was Paris in October, Mr and Mrs Eckstein and Mr and Mrs Häfner and their child went to that city and were photographed with Him. From the 13th to the 16th of October, Miss Margarethe Döring remained with 'Abdul-Bahá and had the honour of living in the house occupied by Him; from the 19th to the 22nd, Miss Anna Kastlin, Miss Julie Stäbler and Mrs Schweizer were in Paris and during the three days of their visit were received six times in private audience. [SoW Vol 2 No 17 January 19, 1912 p8] [key]	Stuttgart; Germany	Louis Gregory
1911 3 Jun	Ghodsea Khanoum Ashraf (Qudsíyyih Ashraf) (b. 22 November 1889 in Majidābād, d. 16 April 1976 in Tehran) arrived in the United States together with Dr. Lutfullah Hakim and four others. On the final leg of her journey from Southhampton to New York City aboard the RMS Mauretania, she was accompanied by Louis Gregory. She was the first Persian woman to travel to the country and as such, received considerable press coverage. [BFA2:358] She remained in the United States until 1919. Her return to Iran was delayed due to travel restrictions during the war. During this time she obtained a high school certificate, a bachelor's degree and then a master's degree. She was asked by ʿAbdu'l-Bahá to represent the women of the East at the cornerstone-laying ceremony of the Temple in Wilmette on the 1st of May in 1912 and met Him again in Washington during November of the same year. Upon her return to Iran she produced her academic credentials to the Education Minister and declared her readiness to serve her country. Despite her many outstanding qualifications he refused to hire her because she was a Bahá'í. Despite being denied the opportunity to serve as a teacher she found ways to render service in the field of education. With the passing of Lillian Kappes, the principal at the time of the Tarbiyat Girls’ School of Tehran (Tarbiyat al-Banat), she took over as principal. In that capacity she took significant initiatives, notably offering monthly conferences and adult literacy classes. She became further qualified by obtaining a diploma in nursing and then another in midwifery and subsequently opened clinics that offered services to the poor and the disadvantaged. In 1956 Ms. Ashraf initially joined her nephew Mr. Abdollah Sahihi, a pioneer in Brazil. She then served in three more countries; Brazil, Ecuador and Columbia. In 1963 she attended the World Congress in London and then returned to Iran to continue her service to her native country. See Ahmad Sohrab's letter to her in SW6, 10:77–9. For short biographies see SCF55-85; Encyclopedia Iranica and Iran Press Watch.	Majidabad; Tihran; Iran; United States	Ghodsieh Ashraf (Qudsiyyih Ashraf); Firsts, Other; Tarbiyat School	The first Persian woman to travel in the USA.
1912 23 Apr	Talk at Howard University, Washington, D.C. Howard University had been founded in 1867 to educate the newly freed slaves and by 1912 it was one of the foremost black universities in the country. It is reported that well over a thousand students, faculty members, administrators and guests jammed into the Rankin Chapel as 'Abdu'l-Bahá spoke with Louis Gregory standing beside Him. The Howard University Journal, 26 April 1912, published His entire address. [PUP44, APD29, 239Dp40; Mahmúd's Diary p50-54; SoW Vol 3 No 3 April 28, 1912 p14] To recapitulate His talk, `Abdu’l-Bahá emphasized the personal sacrifice of Northern whites for southern blacks in the course of the Civil War, and that African Americans (as the descendants of emancipated slaves) should therefore be grateful to whites in kind. In so saying, `Abdu’l-Bahá invoked history (or a certain view of it) in order to make history—by completing the unfinished work of the Emancipation Proclamation. ['Abdu’l-Bahá’s 1912 Howard University Speech: A Civil War Myth for Interracial Emancipation by Dr Christopher Buck p134] See as well TMTW51. Coralie and George Cook arranged for 'Abdu'l-Bahá to speak at Howard University. Both were professors at Howard,, she the Chair of Oratory and he was professor of Commercial and International Law and later the Dean of the School of Commerce and Finance. [AWD70, 165] 'Abdu'l-Bahá attended a reception at the Khan residence in the Persian embassy where He met Admiral Robert Peary. In the words of Juliet Thompson `Abdu'l-Bahá had told the Admiral, "That `for a very long time the world had been much concerned about the North Pole, where it was and what was to found there. Now he, Admiral Peary, had discovered it and that nothing was to [be] found there; and so, in forever relieving the public mind, he had rendered a great service." [DJT272-273] It was on this occasion, at a dinner for the elite of Washington, that 'Abdu'l-Bahá asked, "Where is Mr Gregory? Bring me Mr Gregory!" when He saw that a place had not been set for him at the dinner table. Khan fetched Mr Gregory and 'Abdu'l-Bahá made a place for him on His right. 'Abdu'l-Bahá gave a talk on the oneness of humankind and Agnes Parsons, who was seated on His left, asked a question about spiritual healing. [SYH59] Talk at Home of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur J. Parsons, 1700 Eighteenth Street, NW, Washington, D.C. about the Titanic disaster. [PUP46; SoW Vol 3 No 3 April 28, 1912 p12; YouTube 'Abdu'l-Bahá - Life After Death] Talk to Bethel Literary Society, Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church, M Street, NW, Washington, D.C. [PUP49; SoW Vol 3 No 3 pg5] [key]	Washington DC; United States	Abdul-Baha, Travels of; Abdul-Baha, Second Western tour; Abdul-Baha, Talks at universities; Howard University; Abdul-Baha, Talks at homes; Abdul-Baha, Talks at churches; Admiral Peary; Ali Kuli Khan; Agnes Parsons	first time 'Abdu'l-Bahá addressed the race issue in America
1912 Apr	At some point during his stay in Washington, 'Abdu'l-Bahá was invited to tea by nine year-old Rene Hooper, her widowed mother Marie and their cook, Eurirhra. (In 1908 Herbert Hooper, an architect who had studied at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris and who had accompanied Thomas Breakwell when he returned from his pilgrimage to Paris, died of tuberculosis.) 'Abdu'l-Bahá accepted the invitation on the condition that they invite Black friends as well. They were not from Washington and so the only such person they knew was Louis Gregory so they invited him. As it happened, Eurirhra's family was able to attend and so they had the bounty of serving them as well. [BW20p916; SYH61	Washington DC; United States	Herbert Hooper; Rene Hooper; Rene Welsh; Marie Hooper; Eurirhra
1912 4 Aug	'Abdu'l-Bahá spoke to a group of 28 black people on the importance of unity and friendship between the races and announced that Louise Mathew and Louis Gregory were to be married. [SYH71] Mahmúd, page 189-190 stated that this event took place on the 2nd of August.	Dublin; New Hampshire; United States	Abdul-Baha, Travels of; Abdul-Baha, Second Western tour; Abdul-Baha, Life of; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Abdul-Baha, Basic timeline; Louise Mathew; Louis Gregory
1912 22 or 27 Sep	The marriage of Louis G. Gregory and Louisa (“Louise”) A. M. Mathew, the first interracial Bahá’í couple, who met while on pilgrimage and whom 'Abdul-Bahá had encouraged to marry. They exchanged Bahá’í vows after the rites performed by Rev. Everard W. Daniel, curate of St. Philip’s Protestant Episcopal Church, perhaps the most prestigious African American church in the country, in a private ceremony in his residence. In a “Tablet” (translated March 14, 1914). She was 46 and he was 8 years younger. [SYH73-75, 91] `Abdu’l-Bahá lauded the Gregorys’ marriage as “an introduction to the accomplishment” of harmony between the races. [`ABDU’L-BAHÁ’ S 1912 HOWARD UNIVERSITY SPEECH: A CIVIL WAR MYTH FOR INTERRACIAL EMANCIPATION p117 by Dr Christopher Buck] See The Journey West. The prayer, "Verily, they are married in obedience to thy command. Cause them to become the signs of unity and harmony until the end of time..." was revealed for their wedding by 'Abdu'l-Bahá. [FMH97] ”Intermarriage is a good way to efface racial differences. It produces strong, beautiful offspring, clever and resourceful.” [sYH7] [239D:169] reported this marriage took place on the 27th of September. At this time interracial marriage was legal in Washington but not socially acceptable. It was outlawed in 25 states. It wasn't until 1967 that legislation forbidding interracial marriages was henceforth illegal. In the Washington community at this time there were white Bahá'ís who did not yet understand the principle of racial unity. [SYH80, 85-86] "I made that marriage." 'Abdu'l-Bahá is reported having said to Mrs Parsons. "I wish the white and coloured races to marry"	New York; United States	Marriage; Louis Gregory; Louisa Mathew Gregory; Firsts, Other; Race (general); Unity; Interracial marriage; Weddings; Louise Gregory	the first interracial Bahá’í couple
1917 (in the year)	A Bahá'í Reading Room was established in Chicago by Luella Kirchner in 1917 or perhaps earlier and became the scene of an incident that exemplified a stage of evolution in the North American Bahá'í community. Because communications with 'Abdu'l-Bahá had been severed due to the war, the community was free to develop as it might. The Reading Room had become host to the "Harmonite Bahá'ís" - those who subscribed to the metaphysical interpretations of the Bahá'í Writings by W. W. Harmon. The situation came to a head when both the House of Spirituality and the Reading Room sent delegates to the Boston convention in April 1917. In November, during an event to commemorate the Centenary of the birth of Bahá'u'lláh in Chicago, the national community took up the affair and appointed an investigative committee consisting of Mason Remey (chair) as well as Emogene Hoagg, George Latimer and Louis Gregory. Their report tabled on the 9th of December found that the Reading Room (now calling themselves the Chicago Bahá'í Assembly), had been in violation for "mingling human ideas with the Word of God". The victory over the "dissenters" was not complete however. In addition to those who were attracted by Harmon's interpretations there were those leading Bahá'ís like Agnes Parsons and Joseph Hannen who objected to the way the committee had conducted it's investigation. However, at the April 1918 convention the report was unanimously approved by the delegates albeit with several absent delegates. Thus the balance between liberalism and authoritarianism was shifted to the latter with firm ideas about what constituted the Bahá'í belief. As a result in 1918 there was a proposal to establish a review procedure for Bahá'í publications, both old and new as well as measures to ensure doctrinal control at Green Acre. [SBBH1p189-194] [key]	Chicago; United States	Review
1920 27 Jan	The passing of Joseph H. Hannen, (b. January 27, 1920, Allegheny, Pennsylvania) Disciple of 'Abdu'l-Bahá a week after he was knocked down by a truck in Washington, DC. [Washington Evening Star 29 Jan 1920] It was Joseph Hannen who served as a note-taker for many of the talks of 'Abdu'l-Bahá during His tour in the United States. A number of the entries in Promulgation of Universal Peace have been accredited to him. [The Washington Times 28 January, 1928] ‘Abdu’l-Bahá sent the first Tablet of the Divine Plan to the southern states in care of Joseph. He and his wife Pauline taught the Faith to African Americans; among those they taught were Louis Gregory and Mrs. Pocahontas Pope. [Bahá'í Chronicles, Alain Locke: Faith and Philosophy pp 38-39 by Christopher Buck, Kalimat Press] He was buried with his wife, Pauline Amalie Knobloch Hannen (b. 29 August, 1874 d. 4 October, 1939) in Prospect Hill Cemetery, in Washington, DC. iiiii	Washington DC; Allegheny; United States	Joseph Hannen; Pauline Hannen; Disciples of Abdul-Baha; In Memoriam; Births and deaths; Cemeteries and graves; Tablets of the Divine Plan; Promulgation of Universal Peace (book)
1921 19-21 May	The first Race Amity Conference was held in Washington DC at the old First Congregational Church, 10th & G Streets NW. This church had a reputation for opposition to racial prejudice and had close ties with Howard University. It had a capacity of 2,000. [BW2:281; CoO197; SYH126] Martha Root handled the newspaper publicity for the conference and 'Abdu'l-Bahá sent a message to it via Mountfort Mills. [SYH126] Mabry and Sadie Oglesby and their daughter Bertha from Boston as well as Agnes Parsons and Louis Gregory were involved. Agnes Parsons, during her pilgrimage in 1920, was instructed by 'Abdu'l-Bahá, "I want you to arrange in Washington a convention for unity between the white and colored people."[SETPE1p141-145, BW2p281] For details of the conference see the article by Louis Gregory entitled "Inter-racial Amity". [BW2:281-2] See article The Bahá'í 'Race Amity' Movement and the Black Intelligentsia in Jim Crow America:Alain Locke and Robert Abbot by Christopher Buck [Bahá'í Studies Review, 17, pages 3-46, 2011] (includes a chronology of 29 Race Amity conferences organized in the United States between 1921 and 1935). The Washington Bee (which, as part of its masthead, billed itself “Washington’s Best and Leading Negro Newspaper”) published the text of the entire speech on May 25, 1912, in an article headlined, “Abdue [ sic] Baha: Revolution in Religious Worship.” Documentary: 'Abdu'l-Baha's Initiative on Race from 1921: Race Amity Conferences. See the film Root of the Race Amiy Movement. See the trailer for the film An American Story: Race Amity and the Other Tradition. See the website for the National Centre for Race Amity.	Washington DC; United States	Race (general); Race Amity; Race unity; Conferences, Race Amity; First conferences; Mabry Oglesby; Sadie Oglesby; Agnes Parsons; Louis Gregory; Martha Root; Mountfort Mills	First Race Amity Conference
1921 Fall 1921 - Spring 1922	Louis Gregory set out on his teaching trip that was described as "one of the most brilliant Baha'i Teaching Tours we have ever been privileged to have in they country". [TMW122] He visited the following cities: Oberlin, OH; Cleveland, OH; Chicago, IL; Minneapolis, MH; St Paul, MN; Duluth, MN; Lincoln, NE; Omaha, NE; Denver, CO; Pueblo, CO; Salt Lake City, UT; Butte, MT; Helena, MT; Spokane, WA; Seattle, WA; Vancouver, BC; Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA; Berkley, CA; Los Angeles, CA; Phoenix, AZ; Oklahoma City, OK; Tulsa, OK; Topeka, KS; Kansas City, MO; St Louis, MO; Springfield, IL; Urbana, IL The following Spring Louis Gregory was elected to the National Spiritual Assembly which precluded such long tours although he did continue his shorter trips to the South. [TMW122] [key]	United States	Louis Gregory; Teaching
1924 22 - 23 Oct	The fourth Race Amity Convention was held in Philadelphia. Because there were few Bahá'ís in the city at that time it required assistance from other communities. Roy Williams played a key role as he had in Springfield. Louis Gregory spent one month writing articles for the newspapers, speaking and serving in other ways. The first session was attended by some 600 people, and, thanks to the excellent press coverage, 900 were present the second day. The following day, on the 24th of October, the Bahá'í supported a Conference on Inter-racial Justice organized by the Quakers. Followup meetings were held on the 25th and the 26th of October. [SYD147-149] [key]	Philadelphia; United States	Race Amity; Roy Williams; Louis Gregory
1925 4 Jul – 9 Jul	The Seventeenth Annual Convention of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada was held at Green Acre. [GAP117; SBR94] National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada was elected for the first time. The National Assembly superseded the institution of Bahá'í Temple Unity formed during `Abdu'l-Bahá's ministry. [GPB333; SETPE1p107] Like the previous attempts at electing a National Assembly in 1922, 1923 and 1924, the delegates didn't fully understand the Bahá'í election procedure. Nine members were elected as well as nine alternates whose purpose was to replace absent members at meetings. Those elected as members were: Horace Holley, (sec), Montfort Mills, (Chair), Florence Morton (tres.), Siegried Schopflocher, Roy Wilhelm, Alfred Lunt, (vice and asst. treas), Elizabeth Greenleaf, May Maxwell, Agnes Parson. [BN No 4 April 1925 p2] Subsequently it was announced that the following persons were members of the National Assembly: Horace Holley, (Sec'y), Mountfort Mills, (chair) Florence Morton, (Treas.), Fred Schopflocher, Roy Wilhelm,(Vice), Allen McDaniel, Carl Scheffler, Ali Kuli Khan, and Amelia Collins. [BN No 6 July-August 1925 p2, 5] Another ballot was taken for alternatives to those elected and selected were: Alfred Lunt, Agnes Parsons, William Randall, May Maxwell, George Latimer, Louis Gregory, Elizabeth Greenleaf, Mariam Haney and Keith Ransom-Kehler. [BN No 6 July-August 1925 p5] The offices of the National Spiritual Assembly were located in 169 Christopher Steet, New York at this time. [BN No 4 April 1925 p2] [key]	Green Acre	Horace Holley; Mountfort Mills; Florence Morton; Fred Schopflocher; Roy Wilhelm; Allen McDaniel; Carl Scheffler; Ali Kuli Khan; Amelia Collins; National Convention	first National Spiritual Assembly of United States and Canada; first full-time secretary NSA United States and Canada
1927 Jan (Towards end of the month)	Chicago held its first Race Amity Conference. Louis Gregory spoke. [SYH147] [key]	Chicago, IL	Race Amity; Louis Gregory
1927 8 - 10 Apr	The second conference for racial amity in Washington was held at the Mt Pleasant Congregational Church with the cooperation and participation of other like-minded groups and persons. [BW2p284] Members of the Race Amity committee were Louis Gregory; Agnes Parsons, Sia Baghdad, Alain Locke and Pauline Hannen. [SYH146] Other conferences were held inNew York state, in Portsmouth, NewHampshire, with monthly amity meetings in Boston and a second one in Washington in November. [SYH146] [key]	Washington DC; United States	Race (general); Race Amity; Race unity; Conferences, Race Amity
1927 29 Apr - 1 May	The third National Convention of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada was held at the Windsor Hotel in Montreal, the hotel where 'Abdu'l-Bahá stayed during His visit in 1912. [Bahá'í News No. 17 April, 1927] It was attended by 32 of the 95 elected delegates, others voting "by wire". Those elected to the National Spiritual Assembly were: Allen McDaniel, chairman; Roy C. Wilhelm, vice-chairman; Horace Holley, secretary; Carl Scheffler, treasurer: Mesdames Florence R. Moron, May Maxwell and Amelia Collins, Messrs. Alfred E. Lunt and Louis G. Gregory. This reference contains a very complete report of the Convention including letters from the Guardian. [BN No 18 June 1927 p2-9] See FMH41-42. A major subject of which was race relations. Edwina Powell spoke on the subject, as she had been asked by Shoghi Effendi. In her address, Sadie Oglesby recalled her conversations with Shoghi Effendi on the subject of race. [TMW178–80] [key]	Montreal; Quebec; Canada; United States	Conventions, National; Allen McDaniel; Roy C. Wilhelm; Horace Holley; Carl Scheffler; Florence R. Moron; May Maxwell (Bolles); Amelia Collins; Alfred Lunt; Louis Gregory; Edwina Powell; Sadie Oglesby
1927 (Summer)	The first Race Amity Conference was held in Green Acre. It was organized by Louis Gregory, Agnes Parsons, Dr Zia Bagdadi, Alain Locke, and Pauline Hannen. [GAP118, SYH146] [key]	Green Acre	Race Amity; Louis Gregory; Agnes Parsons; Dr Zia Bagdadi; Alain Locke; Pauline Hannen
1928 Jan (toward the end of the month)	The Chicago community held its first Race Amity Conference. Louis Gregory was a speaker at that gathering. [SYH147] [key]	Chicago, IL	Race Amity Conference; Louis Gregory; Race (general); Race unity; Conferences, Race Amity
1928 11 - 12 Feb	The ‘Conference for Inter-Racial Amity' was arranged by Inter-Racial Amity Committee of the Bahá’ís of Montreal’. There were three sessions in three venues: the YMCA, Channing Hall, and the Union Congregational Church. Speakers included Louis Gregory (‘International Lecturer on Race Relations’) and Agnes MacPhail, first Canadian woman Member of Parliament. [The Bahá'í 'Race Amity' Movement and the Black Intelligentsia in Jim Crow America: Alain Locke and Robert Abbot by Christopher Buck page 34, Bahá'í Studies Review, 17, pages 3-46, 2011, BW7p660] See BW6p659-664 for the essay by Louis Gregory entitled "Racial Likenesses and Differences: The Scientific Evidence and the Bahá'í Teachings". Date conflict: "The Origins of the Bahá'í Community of Canada, 1898-1948 by Will C. van den Hoonaard on page 90 says: "and on 2-4 March 1930 The Montreal Bahá'ís held Race Amity meeting." His source was the National Bahá'í Archives Canada, Notes on Montreal Bahá'í History. SYH147 confirms the conference in Montréal was in "mid-February".	Montreal; Quebec; Canada	Race (general); Race Amity; Race unity; Conferences, Race Amity; Agnes MacPhail; Louis Gregory
1928 26–30 Apr	The National Convention of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada was held in the Foundation Hall of the House of Worship for the first time. [BW2:180; CT167; BN No 24 June 1928] Elected were Allen Mc Daniel (chair), Alfred Lunt (vice-chair), Horace Holley (secretary), Carl Scheffler (treasurer), Roy Wilhelm, May Maxwell, Louis Gregory, Amelia Collins, and Nellie French. [USBN No 26 September, 1928] See BW2:180 for a picture. See FMH53-54] [key]	Wilmette; Chicago; United States	Conventions, National; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette; Firsts, Other; Allen McDaniel; Alfred Lunt; Horace Holley; Carl Scheffler; Roy Wilhelm; May Maxwell (Bolles); Louis Gregory; Amelia Collins; Nellie French	first time National Convention held in the Foundation Hall of the House of Worship, Wilmette
1932 27 Feb	Race Amity gatherings became an effective way promote the principle of racial equality. A number pf banquets were held and at one such gathering held in Los Angeles, the circle of racial amity activities was widened to include not only white and coloured but also Native Americans, as well as Chinese and Japanese. At the banquet dinner, Nellie French represented the National Assembly and Chief Luther Standing Bear, who attended in full regalia with a number of his tribesmen, offered a prayer and spoke of peace as a covenant among all races. A Native American tribal dance followed as part of the programme. [Louis Gregory, ‘Racial Amity in America: An Historical Review’, in BW7p652-666.] [key]	Los Angeles; California; United States	Race (general); Race Amity; Race unity; Conferences, Race Amity; Native Americans; Chinese diaspora; Japanese diaspora
1937 14 Jan	Louis and Louise Gregory sailed to Haiti with the assignment to introduce the Faith to prominent Haitians. Although they met with success they were not able to extend their stay.. They were watched by the authorities and undermined by a "high ecclesiastical authority". They were denied permission to hold meetings so they left the country on the 10th of April and returned home via Kingston, Jamaica. [SYH218, 242; TMW246-251] See the report as given by the Inter-America Committee in BN no 109 July 1937 p3-5.	Haiti	Louise Gregory; Louis Gregory; Persecution, Haiti
1944 Ridván	Those elected to serve the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada were: George O. Latimer (Chairman), Allen B. McDaniel (Vice), Horace Holley (Secretary), Louis G. Gregory (Recording Secretary), Roy C. Wilhelm (Treasurer), Dorothy Baker. Amelia E. Collins, Philip G. Sprague, Leroy Ioas. The Assembly appointed Siegfried Schopflocher to serve as the Treasurer of the Canadian Bahá’í Fund. [	North America; United States; Canada	National Convention; George Latimer; Allen McDaniel; Horace Holley; Louis Gregory; Roy Wilhelm; Dorothy Baker; Amelia Collins; Philip Sprague; Leroy Ioas; Siegfried Schopflocher
1944 May	The first All-American Bahá’í Convention was held. Those elected to the National Spiritual Assembly were: George 0. Latimer, (Chair), Allen McDaniel, (Vice), Horace Holley, (Sec'y), Louis Gregory, (Recording Sec'y), Roy Wilhelm, (Treas), Dorothy Baker, Amelia Collins, Philip Sprague, and Leroy Ioas. [BW No 169 September 1944 p6] For the first time the delegates had been selected at state and provincial conventions by votes from all believers rather than by communities with local assemblies. [BW9:44; PP390] Hilda Yen Male (Hilda Yen) asked to attend the 1944 Baháʼí Annual convention as an observer. She was moved by the spontaneous gestures of welcome and care shown between individuals society normally kept apart as the material demonstration of the ideals of a worldwide unity across all humanity. She requested to enroll as a Baháʼí. She then asked to address the convention as a Baháʼí: "Fellow Baha'is, this is more than a pleasure. It is a miracle that I am participating with you in discussing such important matters. I contacted two denominations and a parliament of religions before I met Julia Goldman, Baha'i, who sowed this seed in my heart. While convalescent from a flying crash, my life was given me for service to God. Julia took me under her wing. I saw God vaguely; then more clearly, through the Baha'i Faith. Then came the battle of Hongkong(sic) where all shared in a common danger and hunger - forced to live the oneness of mankind. At length I secured a priority to fly to America and how do I rejoice to be in this free country! Conferring with Americans I have found this country the best to execute the message of peace. I have been blessed in meeting other Baha'is. I have been deeply impressed by the love and affection among Baha'is. China is well prepared by its sages for the Baha'i Faith. …" [BW No 169 September 1944 p6] [key]	North America; United States	Conventions, National; Conventions, District; First conventions; Hilda Yen	first All-American Bahá’í Convention
1945 Ridván	The election for the National Spiritual Assembly was held by postal ballot. The tellers completed their work in the Temple Foundation Hall. Those selected as members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada were: Horace Holley, Dorothy Baker, Philip Sprague, George Latimer, Amelia Collins, Louis Gregory, Leroy Ioas, Allen McDaniel, Roy C. Wilhelm. [BN No175 Jun 1945 p3] The inability, under restrictions imposed by the war, to hold Convention sessions this year challenged the National Spiritual Assembly to maintain the important functions of the annual meeting through other means. Steps were therefore taken to provide for Voting by mail, with a committee of tellers to serve in the customary way, to conduct a public meeting or Bahá’í Congress in Foundation Hall during the Riḍván Period, and to provide the delegates with subjects for written suggestions and views. [BN No 174 April-May 145 p2] For the first time in the history of this Assembly, a postal by-election was held to fill a vacancy caused by the fact that Mr Wilhelm could no longer attend meetings. Elsie Austin was elected as of the 16th of March and attended one meeting before dissolution. [BN No 182 April 1946 p1] [key]	Wilmette; United States	National Convention; National Spiritual Assembly, election of; Horace Holley; Dorothy Baker; Philip Sprague; George Latimer; Amelia Collins; Louis Gregory; Leroy Ioas; Allen McDaniel; Roy Wilhelm
1951 30 Jul	Louis Gregory, Hand of the Cause of God, passed away in Eliot, Maine, near Green Acre. [CoF163; BW12:666; TMW310, LOF98; SYH236; BN No 247 September 1951 p1] A national memorial service was held for him at the Temple in Wilmette on the 24th of November 1951. [SYH236] Soon after his passing he was designated by Shoghi Effendi the first Hand of the Cause of his race. (On 5 August, 1951) [BBD91; BW12:666, MoCxxii] Louis Gregory was the first person of his race to be elected to any administrative body in the United States. [-from talk by Louis Venters 2min 13sec] See TG114, 117-8 for a description of his passing . For his obituary see BW12:666–70. See a list of his publications. For biographical information on Hand of the Cause Louis Gregory see Gayle Morrison, To Move the World: Louis G. Gregory and the Advancement of Racial Unity in America (Wilmette, IL, USA Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1982, 1999 printing). For short biographical information see Bahá'í Encyclopedia] Louis Gregory kept a journal of his visit to 'Abdu'l-Baha in 1911 including statements of 'Abdu'l-Baha, stories of the believers in the Holy Land and his experiences at the Shrines. It includes a selection of tablets 'Abdu'l-Baha addressed to him. A Heavenly Vista: The Pilgrimage of Louis G. Gregory". See Louis Gregory, the Oneness of Humanity, and Highlights in the Development of the African-American Lawyer a presentation by Anthony Vance.	Eliot; Maine; United States	Louis Gregory; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; In Memoriam; Hands appointed posthumously by Shoghi Effendi; Firsts, Other	first black Hand of the Cause
1956 20 May	Louisa Mathew Gregory, (b. 1 February 1866 in Penge, Kent, England) whose wedding to Hand of the Cause of God Louis Gregory in 1912 was the first interracial western Bahá’í marriage, passed away in Eliot, Maine. [BW13:878; SYH19, 239] She had been introduced to the Faith by Edith Sanderson in Paris in about December of 1909. Edith had been taught by May Maxwell in 1902. [SYH5, 206] For her obituary see BW13:376–8. Error in this article There was no Bahá'í Congress in Prague in 1928 She did not attend Cambridge. 'Abdu'l-Bahá did not attend her marriage on the 27 September 1912. He was in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. [SYHvii-viii; 28] [key]	Eliot; Maine; United States; Penge; Kent	Louisa Mathew Gregory; Louise Gregory; Edith Sanderson; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; Firsts, Other	first interracial western Bahá’í marriage
1962 20 Jul	The passing of Harlan Foster Ober (b. October 6, 1881 in Beverly, Massachusetts) in Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa. He had graduated from Harvard University in 1905 with a B.A. and later obtained a law degree from Northeastern University in Boston. Harlan Ober became a Bahá'í at Green Acre in 1905. Another source said it was in the spring of 1906 in a room in the Commonwealth Hotel in Boston that he overcame his doubts while using a prayer and other literature given to him by Lua Getsinger. [LDNW23; 100-101; SBR120-121] Hooper Harris and Lua Getsinger's brother, Dr. William Moore, were selected to make a teaching trip to India. When Moore died suddenly Harlan Ober was chosen to replace him. As he had no funds for the trip Lua borrowed the money from Mr Hervey Lunt, the father of Alfred Lunt. [LGHC105] In 1906 he made a visit to 'Abdu'l-Bahá while He was still confined to prison. On the 17th of July, 1912 he married Grace Roberts (aunt of future Hand of the Cause John Robarts) in a ceremony conducted by the Reverend Howard Colby Ives at 209 West 78th Street in New York. When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá visited America in 1912 He had suggested that Grace Robarts and Harlan marry, and they both agreed with the match, with Harlan travelling to New York from Boston and proposing in Central Park after being informed of the suggestion by Lua Getsinger. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá performed the marriage ceremony in the room he was staying in in New York on July 17, 1912, and Howard Colby Ives later performed a legal ceremony. [SoW Vol 3 No 12 p14; Bahaipedia; The Jouney West, July 2012; Mother’s Stories: Stories of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Early Believers told by Muriel Ives Barrow Newhall to her son, p. 20] They adopted three children of English, German and Russian background. It was from their home in Cambridge, MA, from the office of the National Teaching Committee, that the first Teaching Bulletin was issued on November 19, 1919. This bulletin evolved to the US Baha'i News. He was closely involved with Race Unity work and made many teaching trips to the southern states with his friend Louis Gregory. He served on the Bahá'í Temple Unity Executive Board as president or secretary from 1918 to 1920. The work of this board was taken over by the National Spiritual Assembly when it was elected in 1922. In 1938 Harlan was elected to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada and he served on it until 1941. Grace passed away in 1938, leaving Harlan widowed. He married his second wife, Dr Elizabeth Kidder Ober in Beverly, MA on the 21st of June, 1941. Shoghi Effendi was pleased with the way the marriage was conducted, without having any church ceremony or minister conduct the service. [BW13p869, 871] After their pilgrimage in 1956 Harlan and Elizabeth Ober travelled to South Africa where they helped form the first all-African Local Spiritual Assembly in Pretoria as had previously been request of them by the Guardian. They returned in December as pioneers. [BW13869] He was appointed to the Auxiliary Board for Protection in Africa in October of 1957 and served on the National Teaching Committee of South and West Africa for two years. He was buried in the Zandfontein Cemetery in Pretoria. [BW13p870; Find a grave] [Bahaipedia; BW13p869]	Beverly MA; United States; Pretoria; South Africa	Harlan Ober; Grace Robarts Ober; In Memoriam; US Bahai News; Race Unity; Elizabeth Kidder Ober; Elizabeth Ober; Auxiliary Board Members	first US Baha'i News;
1968 10 Dec	The Louis G. Gregory Award for Service to Humanity was established by the National Spiritual Assembly in 1968. The first recipients, honoured at a banquet in the Washington Hilton and sponsored by the North American Bahá’í Office for Human Rights (NABOHR, were the Xerox Corporation and Clark M. Eichelberger. Mr. Eichelberger, Chairman of the Commission to Study the Organization of Peace, will receive the award for his accomplishments in the field of human rights over a period of many years. He was a consultant to the League of Nations Secretariat and was a member of a committee to prepare the first U.S. working draft of the United Nations Charter. He was a consultant to the U.S. delegation to the 1945 Conference in San Francisco to organize the United Nations. His most recent effort was overseeing the drafting and presentation of a special report on The United Nations and Human Rights. He is the author of four books on the U.N. The Xerox Corporation was selected because of its sponsorship of the television series Of Black America and its other outstanding efforts in behalf of human rights. [Bahá'í National Review Issue 12 December 1968 p3; Bahá'í National Review Issue 14 February 1969 p10] [key]	Washington DC	Race amity; Louis G. Gregory Award for Service to Humanity; Louis Gregory
1971 24 May	The passing of Anna Reinke (b. 15 August, 1882 Travis County, Texas) in Travis County Texas. She was buried in the Maul Cemetery in Travis County. She is considered the mother of the Bahá'í community in Texas. Anna Reinke was a seamstress who lived in a converted Austin trolley from 1942 until her passing. She had learned of the Faith from her sister in Washington DC. Reinke is credited with the first racially integrated meeting ever held in Texas when she joined Gregory at Anderson High School, which was an all-African American school, where he delivered a message of racial friendship. The program eventually became the forerunner of the Louis Gregory Symposium on Race Unity that began March 27, 2007, and is held annually on Austin’s Huston-Tillotson University campus. In the late 1940s, the Texas Regional Teaching Committee began an annual event, the Inter-racial Panel, that included Texan members of the Bahá'í faith, with the first event—a picnic—held at the home of Reinke, an active committee member. [The Statesman 29 October, 2019] Find a grave	Travis County, TX; Texas; United States	Anna Reinke	first Baha'i in Texas. Held the first racially integrated meeting in Texas.
1984 21 Mar	The inaugural broadcast for Radio Baha'i WLGI, located at the Louis Gregory Bahá'í Institute in Hemingway, South Carolina, was Naw Ruz, 141 B.E. (March 21, 1984). [from an email from Greg Kintz, General Manager, Radio Baha'i, dated 19 March, 2019] WLGI Website To listen to WLGI on-line.	Hemingway SC; South Carolina; United States	Bahai radio; Bahai-owned radio	first Baha'i radio station in North America
2003 7 – 9 Feb	The dedication of the Louis G. Gregory Museum in his birthplace, Charleston, South Carolina. [BWNS188, Wilmette Institute; Bahá'í Encyclopedia] For biographical information on Hand of the Cause Louis Gregory see Gayle Morrison, To Move the World: Louis G. Gregory and the Advancement of Racial Unity in America (Wilmette, IL, USA Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1982, 1999 printing). Museum website.	South Carolina; United States	Louis Gregory Museum; Louis Gregory; Gayle Morrison; BWNS
2004 26 Oct	The passing of Dr. Helen Elsie Austin (b. 10 May 1908 in Alabama) in San Antonio, Texas. She was a pioneer and Knight of Bahá’u’lláh in Morocco. She also served on the National Spiritual Assemblies of the United States and North West Africa. By profession, she was an attorney, she received a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1930 from the University of Cincinnati, becoming the first black woman to graduate from the law school. In 1937 she served as an assistant attorney general for Ohio. She later opened her own law office in Cincinnati. She was secretary of the Cincinnati branch of the NAACP and chair of the legal committee of Colored Women Federated Clubs. In addition, she was a US Foreign Service Officer. [BWNS338; Bahaipedia] In 1955 Dr. Austin wrote Above All Barriers: The Story of Louis G. Gregory It was reprinted in 1964, 1965,1969, and 1976. [BEL7.82] Find a grave.	San Antonio; Texas	In Memoriam; Elsie Austin; Knight of Bahaullah; Louis Gregory

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