Elias Camp Morris (May 7, 1855 – September 5, 1922) was an American minister, politician, and businessman. Born a slave, Morris attended seminary then preached at Centennial Baptist Church in Helena, Arkansas. He rose to prominence among black Baptists, leading the Foreign Missionary Convention. When the convention merged with two other black Baptist organizations in 1895, Morris became the president of the resulting National Baptist Convention, leading it for twenty-seven years. Morris was also active in the Arkansas Republican Party, serving as a national delegate three times, and co-founded the Arkansas Baptist College.
Early life
Elias Camp Morris was born into slavery on May 7, 1855, near Spring Place, Georgia, to James and Cora Cornelia Morris. His father was a literate craftsman and taught Morris how to read and write when he visited twice a week.[1] Following emancipation, Morris attended schools in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Dalton, Georgia, and Stevenson, Alabama. Both of his parents died by the time Morris was fourteen.[2] Morris supported himself by working as a shoemaker from 1872 to 1886. In 1874, he enrolled in the Nashville Normal and Theological Institute and received a license to preach in the Baptist church.[3]
Centennial Baptist Church in Helena, Arkansas. Morris led the congregation from 1879 until his death.
Morris was named the first president of the National Baptist Convention (NBC) in 1895, a role that he served for the rest of his life. The NBC had been formed that year after the merger of three black Baptist organizations, including the Foreign Missionary Convention, which Morris had led.[3] By 1900, the convention represented over 60 percent of African American churchgoers.[4] Afterward he was named to the executive committee of the Baptist World Alliance and was vice president of the Federal Council of Churches of Christ. Morris associated with Booker T. Washington through mutual work in the National Negro Business League.[3] At the time of his death, the NBC was the largest black denomination in America with over two million members.[1]
Morris, E.C. Reflections from the Public Services of E. C. Morris, D. D.: Sermons, Addresses and Reminiscences and Important Correspondence, With a Picture Gallery of Eminent Ministers and Scholars. Nashville: National Baptist Publishing Board, 1901.
^ abSimmons, Martha; Thomas, Frank A., eds. (2010). Preaching with Sacred Fire: An Anthology of African American Sermons, 1750 to the Present. New York: W. W. Norton. pp. 313–314.
