Obediah Summers

Obediah Summers
Born1844
Clay County, Missouri, United States
DiedMarch 15, 1896(1896-03-15) (aged 51–52)
Oakland, California, United States
Burial placeMountain View Cemetery, Oakland, California, United States
Other namesObediah Sommers, Obadiah Summers, Obidiah Summers
Occupation(s)Minister, war veteran
SpouseElizabeth L. Banks (m. 1871–1896; his death)
Children7

Rev. Obediah Summers (1844 – 1896), was an American minister, an American Civil War veteran, and chaplain.[1] He was born enslaved, and briefly worked in servitute within the Confederate States Army, before electing to join the Union Army. Summers served as the pastor at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in San Francisco, California at the end of the 19th century. He later served as the California State Legislature as its first Black chaplain. His name was also spelled as Obadiah Summers,[2] and Obidiah Summers.

Biography

Obediah Summers was born into slavery in 1844, in Clay County, Missouri.[2]

He was forced by his enslaver to serve as his "servant" for the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.[2][3][4] In 1862, Summers was captured at the Battle of Marshfield (in Marshfield, Missouri) by the Union Army, and he choose to serve in company A, in the 18th United States Colored Infantry Regiment.[2][5]

In 1884, Summers worked for the AME church in Nebraska, and was transferred to Marysville, California. Summers moved in 1891 to Oakland, California, and opened the Old Bethel Church on 15th Street.[4] From 1891 to 1894, he served as the pastor at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in San Francisco, California.[6][7][8]

He served as the first Black chaplain for the California State Legislature, during the thirty-first session of the assembly in 1895.[9][10]

Death and burial

He died on March 15, 1896, in Oakland, after an issue with his liver.[11][9][12] He is buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, and was initially placed in a section of the cemetery that was not well funded, and his headstone was misspelled as "O. Sommers".[13]

In 2003–2004, Dennis Evanosky, an Oakland writer, and historian, worked together with Summers' great granddaughter, Myra Adams, to provide him a proper burial.[13] Summers received a new headstone from the U.S. federal government, and it was placed in the Grand Army of the Republic plot reserved for Civil War veterans.[13][14]

See also

References

  1. ^ Anderson, Gene (December 7, 2015). Legendary Locals of Oakland. Arcadia Publishing. p. 43. ISBN 978-1-4396-5405-7.
  2. ^ a b c d "Freed from Debt, Bethel Church Pays Off a Mortgage". San Francisco Chronicle. April 11, 1892. Retrieved November 21, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Casey, Laura (October 18, 2004). "Oakland man fights for Civil War vet". East Bay Times. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  4. ^ a b Evanosky, Dennis (Fall 2005). "Obediah Summers Joins Fellow Veterans in GAR Plot" (PDF). Friends of Mountain View Cemetery (newsletter). The Mountain View Cemetery Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 3, 2011.
  5. ^ "Summers, Obediah – Age 18, Year: 1864 – 18th US Colored Infantry". African American Civil War Memorial Museum. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  6. ^ "Rev. Summers' Success". The Sacramento Bee. April 12, 1892. p. 1. ISSN 0890-5738 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Smiting Hard Blows, Bitter Contention in the Second African M. E. Church". The San Francisco Examiner. July 30, 1892. p. 5. ISSN 2574-593X – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "A Cake-Walk Battle: Society folks oppose exhibition". San Francisco Chronicle. March 24, 1892. p. 5. ISSN 1932-8672 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ a b "Died at Oakland: Rev. Summer Answers the Summons Which Came Unexpectedly". Appeal-Democrat. March 17, 1896. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ The Journal of the Assembly During the ... Session of the Legislature of the State of California. California Legislature Assembly. 1897. p. 115.
  11. ^ "Obituary for Obediah Summers". Oakland Tribune. March 18, 1896. p. 2. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Died: Summers". The San Francisco Call and Post. March 17, 1896. Retrieved November 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ a b c "Oakland man fight for Civil War vet". Oakland Tribune. October 18, 2004. pages 1, 5 Retrieved 2024-11-22. – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Grand Army of the Republic Plot: Obediah Summers". OaklandHistory.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2002.