Samuel W. Starks

Samuel W. Starks (March 10, 1866 – April 3, 1908) was an African American community leader who achieved national prominence through his leadership in the fraternal order the Knights of Pythias.[2] Starks was the first African American to serve as a state librarian when he was appointed as the West Virginia state librarian in 1901.

Samuel W. Starks
Born(1866-03-10)March 10, 1866[1]:4
Charleston, West Virginia, US
DiedApril 3, 1908(1908-04-03) (aged 42)
Charleston, West Virginia, US
NationalityAmerican
Education
OccupationLibrarian

Life and career

Samuel W. Starks was born and raised in Charleston, West Virginia.[1]:4 As a child, he worked as an apprentice to a cooper.[2] He held a number of jobs as a young man, including clerk and telegraph operator for multiple railroads, manager of a mercantile, and manager of the Advocate Publishing Company.[3] Starks attended the Bryant & Stratton Business College in Chicago, Illinois to study stenography and bookkeeping.[3][4]

He organized a number of business ventures in West Virginia and Ohio and was active in West Virginia politics, fighting against efforts to institute racial segregation in the state's public transportation services.[5]

Starks was best known outside of West Virginia for his work in the fraternal order the Knights of Pythias.[6] He helped found the Capitol City Lodge No. 1 in Charleston, and served for sixteen years as the grand chancellor of the state's black Pythians order.[6] He was elected to the Knights of Pythias's highest national office, supreme chancellor, in 1897.[7] While Starks led the organization, its national membership grew from 9,000 to nearly 150,000, including adding 38,000 to the group's women's department, the Order of Calanthe.[7] Starks encouraged members to pool their money to assist black business owners and entrepreneurs in purchasing property; the organization started the Pythian Mutual Investment Association for this purpose in 1902, and Starks served in the role of president of the association.[7][4]

In 1901 West Virginia Governor Albert Blakeslee White appointed Starks to serve as the state librarian, the first African-American to serve as a state librarian.[7] He was reappointed by the following governor, William M. O. Dawson, and served in this role until his death.[1]:5

Starks died in Charleston on April 3, 1908.[8] Governor Dawson spoke at his funeral, which thousands of people attended.[9] He was buried in Spring Hill Cemetery in Charleston, and in 1911 the Knights of Pythias erected a 32-foot granite memorial at his gravesite.[1]:7

Legacy

The Samuel Starks House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.[10]

References
  1. Hunt, Mary M. (1987). National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form (PDF) (Report). Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  2. Curtis, Nancy C. (1996). Black Heritage Sites: An African American Odyssey and Finder's Guide. Chicago, Illinois: American Library Association. p. 257. ISBN 0838906435.
  3. Progressive Americans of the twentieth century : containing biographical sketches of distinguished Americans. Chicago, Illinois: Progressive Publishing Company. 1910. p. 360.
  4. "Samuel Starks House". Clio. 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  5. Wynar, Bohdan S., ed. (1978). Dictionary of American Library Biography. Littleton, Colorado: Libraries Unlimited. pp. 503-504. ISBN 0872871800.
  6. Bickley, Ancella R. (8 December 2015). "Samuel W. Starks". e-WV: the West Virginia Encyclopedia. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  7. "This Week in History". The Journal. Martinsburg, West Virginia. 31 March 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  8. Powell, Bob. "April 3, 1908: Samuel Starks State Librarian Dies". WV Public Broadcasting. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  9. "Samuel W. Starks". West Virginia Archives & History. West Virginia Division of Culture and History. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  10. "Historic Houses of Charleston". e-WV: the West Virginia Encyclopedia. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
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