John Wesley Alstork Explained

Birth Date:	1 September 1852
Birth Place:	Talladega, Alabama
Death Place:	Searcy, Alabama
Occupation:	African American bishop and community organizer

John Wesley Alstork (September 1, 1852 – July 23, 1920) was an American religious leader and African-American community organizer. He was a preacher and bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (A.M.E. Zion Church) and is considered one of the most successful bishops of his church, in part due to his skills at organizing national conferences.^[1] He also was a trustee at several schools for African-Americans, and a businessman. He lived in Montgomery, Alabama.^{[2] [3]}

Early life

John Wesley Alstork was born on September 1, 1852, in Talladega, Alabama.^[4] Early in his life he attended the Longwood Institute, followed by study at Talladega College. He worked as a teacher after graduation. In 1873, he joined the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (A.M.E. Zion Church), and was ordained four years later.

Career

He was a trustee for several schools for African-Americans, and he emphasized the need for industrial education and training.^[5] Alstork founded the Greenville High School in Greenville, Alabama.^[6] In 1898, he founded Lomax Hannon College (first named as A.M.E. Zion Theological Institute; now named Lomax-Hannon Junior College in Greenville).

He received a honorary degree at Livingstone College; and was honored by Talladega College, which was bestowed by Booker T. Washington. Two United States presidents consulted with Alstork, William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt. Engravings of him appear in a book published about the history of the A.M.E. Zion Church, One Hundred Years of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church by J. W. Hood (1895).^[7]

His last speech drew 10,000 people in the audience. Alstork died on July 23, 1920, in Searcy, Alabama, and is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery (now Oakwood Cemetery) in Montgomery, Alabama. His funeral procession was 15 blocks long. In 1953, Bishop William Jacob Walls paid public tribute to Alstork and asked his followers to invest in improvements for Lomax Hannon College which was described as "the soul of the late Bishop".

See also

• National Grand Lodge
• Butler Chapel A.M.E. Zion Church (Greenville, Alabama)
• Religion of black Americans

Further reading

• Book: Owen . Thomas McAdory . History of Alabama and Dictionary of Alabama Biography . Owen . Marie Bankhead . S. J. Clark Publishing . 1921 . 3 . Chicago, IL.
• The Southern Reporter, Volume 91 p. 797-798

Notes and References

1. Web site: July 31, 1920 . Bishop Alstork Laid to Rest Under Wilderness of Flowers . 2022-06-21 . Newspapers.com . The Birmingham Reporter . 1 . en.
2. Web site: The National Cyclopedia of the Colored Race. Clement. Richardson. June 18, 1919. National Publishing Company. Google Books.
3. Book: Encyclopedia of African American Religions. Larry G.. Murphy. J. Gordon. Melton. Gary L.. Ward. November 20, 2013. Routledge. 9781135513382 . Google Books.
4. Web site: July 29, 1920 . North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, UNC-Chapel Hill University Library, North Carolina Digital Heritage Center . John Wesley Alstork Tired. Lies Down to Rest. . DigitalNC . The Star of Zion newspaper.
5. Book: Hartshorn, William Newton . Era of Progress and Promise, 1863–1910: the religious, moral, and educational development of the American Negro since his emancipation . Priscilla Pub. Co. . 1910 . 400 . Bishop J. W. Alstork, D.D., LLD., A.M.E. Zion Church.
6. Web site: September 3, 1953 . Negros Pay Tribute to Bishop Alstork . 2022-06-21 . Newspapers.com . Alabama Journal . 12 . en.
7. Web site: J. W. Hood (James Walker), 1831-1918. One Hundred Years of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church; or, the Centennial of African Methodism .