Benjamin Harrison Whiting (1889 - 1980)

Born 17 Apr 1889 in Washington, District of Columbia, United States

Husband of Blanche Irene (Rollins) Whiting — married 10 Jun 1909 in District of Columbia, United States

Died Jun 1980 at age 91 in Washington, District of Columbia, United States

Benjamin Whiting is a part of US Black heritage.

Biography

He was pastor at Friendship Baptist Church in Washington, D. C. for 53 years.

He grew up in Southwest Washington on a street known as Willow Tree Alley, which he later recalled as one of the toughest sections of the city.^[1]

Benjamin was living at age 11 with his parents in Washington, D. C. He was at school.^[2]

He left school at age 18 to become a mail carrier in the Northwest section of the city.

Benjamin married Blanche Irene Rollins 10 Jun 1909 in the District of Columbia.^[3]

In 1910, at age 21, he was living with his widowed mother Mary E. Whiting in Washington, D. C. He was a mail carrier for the city post office. His wife Blanch was age 21, b. Maryland. His mother was a cook for a private family. Benjamin and Blanche had no children at that time.^[4]

He was responsible for the transmission of mails and the support of his wife when he registered for the World War I draft in 1917.^[5]

He was trained as a minister by Rev. A. J. Tyler of Mount Airy Baptist Church. Rev. Whiting was licensed to preach in 1918 and was ordained a year later.

Benjamin was living with his wife Blanche in Washington, D. C. in 1920. He was a letter carrier for the post office.^[6]

He opened his own store front church, which he called the Corinthian Baptist Church. With the help of a carpenter friend, he took shelves from the walls and made them into pews. He drew $90 of the $91 he had in a savings account to pay the rent. His friends and family thought he was crazy for leaving the security of a postal job for the uncertainties of a full-time ministry.^[7]

Eight years later, he was called as pastor of Friendship Baptist Church.

In 1940 Benjamin was a minister at the Friendship Baptist Church in Washington. He was age 50. His wife Blanch was age 51 b Maryland.^[8]

Rev. Whiting registered for the World War II draft in 1942. He was pastor of the Friendship Baptist Church.^[9]

During the 1950s and 1960s, the neighborhood was the scene of a major, yet socially destructive, urban renewal program. Pastor Whiting and his congregation saved the church from destruction, effectively arguing that the church was one of the bedrock institutions of the neighborhood, along with Randall School and Southwest Health Center—the latter serving the “mind” and the “body” of the neighborhood, while Friendship served the spirit.

Built between 1886 and 1887 by one of the city’s earliest African American congregations, the structure is a representative example of eclectic Victorian design, displaying Romanesque, Gothic Revival, and Queen Anne motifs in its turreted façade. James E. Boyce was the builder; the architect is unknown. Additions include a 1930 choir loft and a 1952 parish hall.^[10]

His first wife, Blanche I. Whiting, died in 1970.

His second wife was Essie M. Whiting.

He died at age 91.^[11]

Sources

1. ↑ "Celebrating His Birth, Faith, and Duties Well Done," by Bart Barnes, Washington Post, April 19, 1979. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1979/04/19/celebrating-his-birth-faith-and-duties-well-done/d7ac7575-17e0-4e58-9be3-353e272db77b/
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMF4-M9R : accessed 27 December 2021), Benjiman Whiting in household of George W Whiting, Washington city, Washington, District of Columbia, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 116, sheet 28A, family 419, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,240,163.
3. ↑ "District of Columbia Marriages, 1811-1950," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XL7W-STY : 9 March 2021), Benj H Whiting and Blanche I Rollins, 10 Jun 1909; citing p. 281, Records Office, Washington D.C.; FHL microfilm 2,108,509.
4. ↑ "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MKLZ-CXH : accessed 27 December 2021), Benjamin Whiting in household of Mary E Whiting, Precinct 2, Washington, District of Columbia, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 27, sheet 4B, family 91, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 149; FHL microfilm 1,374,162.
5. ↑ "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KZFW-MJ7 : 24 December 2021), Benjamin Harrison Whiting, 1917-1918.
6. ↑ "United States Census, 1920", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MNLB-M6Q : 1 February 2021), Benjamin H Whiting, 1920.
7. ↑ "Celebrating His Birth, Faith, and Duties Well Done," by Bart Barnes, Washington Post, April 19, 1979. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1979/04/19/celebrating-his-birth-faith-and-duties-well-done/d7ac7575-17e0-4e58-9be3-353e272db77b/
8. ↑ "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K7SN-3YP : 28 February 2020), Benjamin H Whiting, Tract 60, District of Columbia, Police Precinct 4, District of Columbia, District of Columbia, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 1-140, sheet 12A, line 25, family 316, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 557.
9. ↑ "United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKC4-J3B9 : 10 March 2021), Reverend Benjamin Harrison Whiting, 27 Apr 1942; citing NARA microfilm publication M1936, M1937, M1939, M1951, M1962, M1964, M1986, M2090, and M2097 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
10. ↑ “Friendship Baptist Church,” DC Historic Sites, accessed December 27, 2021, https://historicsites.dcpreservation.org/items/show/219.
11. ↑ "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JBWT-G3F : 11 January 2021), Benjamin Whiting, Jun 1980; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1980/06/21/rev-benjamin-h-whiting-baptist-pastor-in-dc/ed202d26-7d5e-441f-a3ee-09afbe1b0758/