Edward Donahue Pierson (1872 - 1930)

Born 27 Dec 1872 in Natchitoches, Natchitoches, Louisiana, United States

Husband of Mae Dee (Hardy) Pierson — married 18 Sep 1896 in Upshur, Texas, United States

Husband of Elizabeth Lee (Spears) Pierson — married 1 Jul 1900 in Upshur, Texas, United States

Descendants

Died 16 Apr 1930 at age 57 in Jennings Township, Scott, Indiana, United States

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Biography

Edward Pierson is Notable.

Edward Donahue Pierson was an educator, publisher, and businessman. In 1930, while working as an auditor for the National Baptist Convention, he discovered significant financial discrepancies in one of the funds and was murdered before he could file his report.

Edward Donahue Pierson was born in Natchitoches, Louisiana on 27 December 1872 to Lewis Pierson and Laurine (Antoine?). His mother was a former slave; she was widowed and lived in poverty, and Edward supported her. By the age of 18, he ran his own farm and employed several families. Though successful, he sold his farm and enrolled in Bishop College in Marshall, Texas, graduating at the top of his class in 1904.^[1]

He married Mae Dee Hardy on 18 September 1896 in Upshur County, Texas.^[2] They had 2 children, Eulalia and Theodore. May died before 1900, possibly in childbirth or shortly after, but no records regarding her death have been located. Edward married Lizzie Spears on 1 July 1900 in Upshur County, Texas.^[3] They had 1 son, Edward Jr.

Edward appeared in Who's Who Among the Colored Baptists of the United States in 1913.^[1] He also appeared in Who's Who of the Colored Race in 1915.^[4] According to The Red Book of Houston, the family moved to Houston so he could head the Literary Department at Houston College.^[5] Both Who's Who volumes list his numerous successes in publishing, education, and business. The former wrote of him, "Professor Pierson, young and brilliant, fearless yet congenial, is making for himself a record in the religious, business and literary world worthy a page in the history of any race."^[1]

By 1930, the family was living in Chicago, Illinois.^[6] They likely moved there around the mid-1920s; one of his sons married there in 1927.^[7] Edward worked as an auditor for the National Baptist Convention and discovered a $62,000 shortage in the loan fund in 1930. He was tricked into traveling to Indiana by a man named George Washington, where he was shot six times and thrown into a river with his hands and feet bound and his neck weighted down. Edward was found alive and clinging to a tree, but he died by the time he was pulled out of the river. A report detailing the financial discrepancies was found in a briefcase with his body.^[8][9] He is buried at Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip, Illinois.^[10]

Several men associated with the National Baptist Convention were arrested for his murder, including a revered pastor named Benjamin Joshua F. Westbrook, and Arthur Melvin Townsend Sr. and Jr., the elder of whom was one of the wealthiest Black men in the country at the time. Townsend Sr. was accused of being the "brains" behind the plot. However, he posted bail for $10,000 and Tennessee refused to extradite him to Indiana.^[11][12]

Research Notes

Edward's daughter married Sonny Pernetter, Olen DeWalt's brother-in-law. Edward was murdered in 1930; Olen was murdered in 1931.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} 1913. Who's Who Among the Colored Baptists of the United States. Pages 267-269. Accessed on 27 May 2023 via Internet Archive.
2. ↑ Ancestry.com. Texas, U.S., Select County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Accessed via Ancestry.
3. ↑ Ancestry.com. Texas, U.S., Select County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Accessed via Ancestry.
4. ↑ 1915. Who's Who of the Colored Race: A General Biographical Dictionary of Men and Women of African Descent. Vol 1. Page 218. Accessed on 27 May 2023 via Google Books
5. ↑ 1915. The red book of Houston; a compendium of social, professional, religious, educational and industrial interests of Houston's colored population. Pages 100-101. Accessed on 28 May 2023 via Internet Archive
6. ↑ "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XSTS-P9T : accessed 27 May 2023), Edward D Pierson, Chicago (Districts 0001-0250), Cook, Illinois, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 110, sheet 16B, line 76, family 467, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 419; FHL microfilm 2,340,154.
7. ↑ "Illinois, Cook County Marriages, 1871-1968", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q21V-TD89 : 23 January 2023), Edward D Pierson and Esther Mae Jones, 1927.
8. ↑ 17 April 1930. Church Auditor 'Taken for Ride'. The Idaho Falls Post (Idaho Falls, Idaho). Page 7. Accessed on 26 May 2023 via https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/174804190?cid=mem_copy.
9. ↑ Ancestry.com. Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. Accessed on 26 May 2023 via Ancestry.
10. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/40846749/edward-d-pierson: accessed 27 May 2023), memorial page for Edward D. Pierson Sr. (27 Dec 1876–16 Apr 1930), Find a Grave Memorial ID 40846749, citing Burr Oak Cemetery, Alsip, Cook County, Illinois, USA; Maintained by R Wheaton (contributor 46537246).
11. ↑ 13 June 1930. Negro Slaying Believed Solved. The Evening Bulletin (Providence, Rhode Island). Page 17. Accessed on 26 May 2023 via https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/174809372?cid=mem_copy.
12. ↑ 14 June 1930. Murder Charge is Fought by Negro Pastor. The Indianapolis Times (Indianapolis, Indiana). Page 4. Accessed on 27 May 2023 via https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/174840857?cid=mem_copy.

See also:

• FamilySearch Person: GQVZ-PXN
• "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M29W-B11 : accessed 26 May 2023), Edward D Pierson, Houston Ward 4, Harris, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 78, sheet 1B, family 19, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 1559; FHL microfilm 1,375,572.
• "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHY7-4BL : accessed 27 May 2023), Edward D Pearson, Harris, Texas, United States; citing , sheet , line , family , NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll ; FHL microfilm.
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