Louis Henry Ford was born in Mississippi in 1914 and grew up in the Church of God in Christ, deciding to become a minister when he was a young boy. Arriving in Chicago in the early 1940s, he became pastor of the St. Paul Church of God in Christ. Ford received national recognition when he officiated at the funeral of 15-year-old Emmett Till in 1955, and eventually rose to become presiding Bishop of the Church of God in Christ, the largest Pentecostal denomination in the United States. He died in 1995, and the Calumet Expressway was renamed in his honor the next year.

For over 35 years, St. Paul Church owned Clarke House, then located at 4526 S. Wabash Avenue, the Ford family using it as their residence and for various church functions. Ford was deeply committed to preserving Chicago’s oldest house, holding an elaborate birthday party for it every year in August, and working tireless to secure donations of money and supplies to keep the house in excellent repair. He negotiated the sale of the house to the City of Chicago in the 1970s to ensure its preservation.

This online Zoom presentation, held in celebration of Black History Month, will explore Ford’s life, his impact on Chicago’s black community, and how he dedicated himself to preserving Chicago’s oldest building.