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| Cover page to the Working People's Labor and Art Association 1901 Constitution. It was printed in Nashville at Walden University, an African American school. |
According to the 1901 Constitution of the Working People's Labor and Art Association, Perry Morton and H.H. Bains formed the group in 1890. From the beginning the group prided itself on being different from other benevolent and fraternal groups. They did not wear regalia and did not create rituals for the membership. The introduction to their Constitution states that the group was "fitly adapted for the learned and unlearned for the city and country . . ."
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| Introduction to the Constitution |
The language of the document is a product of its time, and it progressive in its tone. It warns about the dangers of "wealthy capitalists" who "combine, consolidate, monopolize and control the world of wealth." The group was also concerned with the uplift of their race, stating in the Preface that, "The aim of the Association is to elevate, unite and give employment to the Negro youth, to establish and encourage charitable undertakings . . . to encourage and foster trades . . . that will guarantee the Negro livelihood . . . and to be of practical utility to race and state." In addition to creating and fostering trade, the WPLAA was a temperance organization, and no one who sold alcohol could be admitted to membership.
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| Preface to the Constitution |
Although the organization wanted to become national, my research indicates that it's reach did not extend beyond Tennessee. Indeed, most lodges appear to be located in Middle Tennessee, although the Nashville Globe reported on July 9, 1909 that J.N. Watkins had recently been in West Tennessee visiting lodges in that region.
Murfreesboro was the site of at least 1 lodge hall for the WPLAA. In 1918, the Working People's Labor and Aid Association (the group had tweaked its name) purchased a lot on South Maple Street, just south of Lytle's Creek from B.F. Gannaway for $350. You can find the lodge hall (labeled as "Lodge Hall Colored") on the 1924 Sanborn map of Murfreesboro in the location described in the 1918 deed.
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| 1924 Sanborn map of Murfreesboro showing the location of the WPLAA lodge hall (sheet 6) |
While it is not known how long the group endured, it is known that the Murfreesboro lodge had ceased existence by 1953. In that year, in an effort to clear the "slums" known as "The Bottoms," the Murfreesboro Housing Authority obtained title to the property on South Maple Street that housed the WPLAA lodge. In the Circuit Court Minutes, it is stated that, "for a number of years past the Lodge has been inactive, no regular meetings have been held and no payment of dues made or required."
In 2011, I presented a paper to the Ohio Valley History Conference about the WPLAA in Murfreesboro and a lawsuit that tore the group apart. You can read the paper here.
