C. L. Franklin
Encyclopedia
Clarence LaVaughn Franklin (often billed as Bishop C. L. Franklin) (January 22, 1915 – July 27, 1984), was an American
Baptist
minister, a civil rights
activist
, and father of the legendary soul and gospel singer Aretha Franklin
.
, to sharecroppers Willie Walker and Rachel Walker née Pittman. C.L. would recall that the only thing his father did for him was to teach him to salute when he returned from service in World War I
in 1919. Willie Walker abandoned the family shortly thereafter (Clarence was only four years old), and the next year Rachel married Henry Franklin, whose surname the family adopted.
At age 16, he became a preacher, initially working the Black itinerant preaching circuit
, before settling at New Salem Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee
, where he remained until May 1944. From there he moved to the pulpit of the Friendship Baptist Church in Buffalo, New York
, where he served until June 1946 when he became pastor of the New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan
.
Throughout the late 1940s and 1950s his fame grew, and he preached throughout the country while maintaining his pulpit at New Bethel. Known as the man with the "Million Dollar Voice", Franklin was one of the first ministers to place his sermons on records (which continued into the 1970s), and also to broadcast sermons via radio
on Sundays. He commanded high fees for his public appearances, and among his most famous sermons were "The Eagle Stirreth Her Nest" and "Dry Bones in the Valley." In addition to his fame as a preacher, Franklin was known for his fine singing voice. He greatly encouraged his daughter Aretha Franklin
in her musical endeavors, and during the 1950s took Aretha with him on speaking tours and musical engagements.
In addition to his ministry, in the 1950s and 1960s as he became involved in the civil rights movement, and worked to end discriminatory practices against black United Auto Workers
members in Detroit.
, with whom he had four children between: Erma
(1938-2002), Cecil (1940-1989), Aretha
(b. 1942), and Carolyn
(1944-1988). Barbara had a son by a previous relationship, Vaughn (b. 1934), whom C. L. adopted shortly after the marriage. Vaughn did not know C. L. Franklin was not his father until 1951. In 1940, Franklin fathered a daughter, Carl Ellan Kelley (née Jennings), by Mildred Jennings, a 13-year-old in his New Salem Baptist Church congregation.
In 1948, C. L. Franklin and Barbara separated, with Barbara moving with Vaughn to Buffalo, New York, and leaving Franklin with the couple's four other children. However, the couple never divorced. According to Franklin's biographer, Professor Nick Salvatore of Cornell University
, Barbara made periodic trips to Detroit to visit her children and the children traveled to New York to visit her during summer vacations. Barbara died of a heart attack in 1952 at age 34. Her husband did not attend her funeral.
C. L. Franklin was a close friend and supporter of Martin Luther King, Jr.
, who deeply admired C. L., and was also known for his close relationships with Mahalia Jackson
and Clara Ward
, two of gospel music's greatest voices. Clara and her singing groups frequently toured with Franklin, and he and Clara had a long-term romantic relationship. Mahalia and Clara greatly encouraged his daughter, Aretha, who credits their mentoring and frequent visits to the Franklin home as great influences.
. He remained in a coma for the next five years. The Franklin children moved him back to the house six months after the tragedy and installed a 24-hour nurse at the residence to monitor the minister. He remained at the home until the middle of 1984. He died on July 27, 1984, just one week after being placed in Detroit's New Light Nursing Home. C. L. was 69 years old.
Franklin was entombed at Detroit's historic Woodlawn Cemetery
on North Woodward Avenue, with his friend, Rev. Jasper Williams Jr., of the Salem Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia, giving the eulogy.
in New Haven, Connecticut
credits C. L. Franklin as one of his major influences.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
minister, a civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
activist
Activism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
, and father of the legendary soul and gospel singer Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
.
Background
He was born Clarence LaVaughn Walker in Sunflower County, MississippiSunflower County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 34,369 people, 9,637 households, and 7,314 families residing in the county. The population density was 50 people per square mile . There were 10,338 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile...
, to sharecroppers Willie Walker and Rachel Walker née Pittman. C.L. would recall that the only thing his father did for him was to teach him to salute when he returned from service in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in 1919. Willie Walker abandoned the family shortly thereafter (Clarence was only four years old), and the next year Rachel married Henry Franklin, whose surname the family adopted.
At age 16, he became a preacher, initially working the Black itinerant preaching circuit
Circuit preacher
A circuit preacher is a Christian minister who, in response to a shortage of ministers, officiates at multiple churches in an area, thus covering a "circuit"....
, before settling at New Salem Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, where he remained until May 1944. From there he moved to the pulpit of the Friendship Baptist Church in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, where he served until June 1946 when he became pastor of the New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
.
Throughout the late 1940s and 1950s his fame grew, and he preached throughout the country while maintaining his pulpit at New Bethel. Known as the man with the "Million Dollar Voice", Franklin was one of the first ministers to place his sermons on records (which continued into the 1970s), and also to broadcast sermons via radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
on Sundays. He commanded high fees for his public appearances, and among his most famous sermons were "The Eagle Stirreth Her Nest" and "Dry Bones in the Valley." In addition to his fame as a preacher, Franklin was known for his fine singing voice. He greatly encouraged his daughter Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
in her musical endeavors, and during the 1950s took Aretha with him on speaking tours and musical engagements.
In addition to his ministry, in the 1950s and 1960s as he became involved in the civil rights movement, and worked to end discriminatory practices against black United Auto Workers
United Auto Workers
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers , is a labor union which represents workers in the United States and Puerto Rico, and formerly in Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial...
members in Detroit.
Personal life
On October 16, 1934, Franklin married his first wife, Alene Gaines, and though that marriage had certainly ended by 1936, the form of dissolution is unknown. On June 3, 1936, Franklin married Barbara SiggersBarbara Siggers Franklin
Barbara Vernice Siggers Franklin was the mother of the legendary soul and gospel singer Aretha Franklin and wife of C. L. Franklin, the famous black Baptist preacher. She married C.L...
, with whom he had four children between: Erma
Erma Franklin
Erma Franklin was an American gospel and R&B singer. She was the oldest daughter of Barbara and the Reverend C. L. Franklin and the elder sister of Aretha Franklin...
(1938-2002), Cecil (1940-1989), Aretha
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
(b. 1942), and Carolyn
Carolyn Franklin
Carolyn Ann Franklin was an American singer and songwriter and the baby sister of musician Aretha Franklin and daughter of prominent preacher C. L. Franklin.-Biography:...
(1944-1988). Barbara had a son by a previous relationship, Vaughn (b. 1934), whom C. L. adopted shortly after the marriage. Vaughn did not know C. L. Franklin was not his father until 1951. In 1940, Franklin fathered a daughter, Carl Ellan Kelley (née Jennings), by Mildred Jennings, a 13-year-old in his New Salem Baptist Church congregation.
In 1948, C. L. Franklin and Barbara separated, with Barbara moving with Vaughn to Buffalo, New York, and leaving Franklin with the couple's four other children. However, the couple never divorced. According to Franklin's biographer, Professor Nick Salvatore of Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, Barbara made periodic trips to Detroit to visit her children and the children traveled to New York to visit her during summer vacations. Barbara died of a heart attack in 1952 at age 34. Her husband did not attend her funeral.
C. L. Franklin was a close friend and supporter of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
, who deeply admired C. L., and was also known for his close relationships with Mahalia Jackson
Mahalia Jackson
Mahalia Jackson – January 27, 1972) was an African-American gospel singer. Possessing a powerful contralto voice, she was referred to as "The Queen of Gospel"...
and Clara Ward
Clara Ward
Clara Ward was an American gospel artist who achieved great success, both artistic and commercial, in the 1940s and 1950s as leader of The Famous Ward Singers....
, two of gospel music's greatest voices. Clara and her singing groups frequently toured with Franklin, and he and Clara had a long-term romantic relationship. Mahalia and Clara greatly encouraged his daughter, Aretha, who credits their mentoring and frequent visits to the Franklin home as great influences.
Violent assault and death
Shortly after midnight on Sunday, June 10, 1979, Franklin was shot twice at point blank range during what was said to be an attempted robbery at his home on Detroit's West Side. C. L. was taken to Henry Ford HospitalHenry Ford Hospital
Henry Ford Hospital, the flagship facility for , is an 805-bed tertiary care hospital, education and research complex located in Detroit ....
. He remained in a coma for the next five years. The Franklin children moved him back to the house six months after the tragedy and installed a 24-hour nurse at the residence to monitor the minister. He remained at the home until the middle of 1984. He died on July 27, 1984, just one week after being placed in Detroit's New Light Nursing Home. C. L. was 69 years old.
Franklin was entombed at Detroit's historic Woodlawn Cemetery
Woodlawn Cemetery (Detroit, Michigan)
Woodlawn Cemetery is a cemetery located at 19975 Woodward Avenue, across from the Michigan State Fairgrounds, between 7 Mile Road and 8 Mile Road, in Detroit, Michigan. It is one of the area's most well-known cemeteries.-History:...
on North Woodward Avenue, with his friend, Rev. Jasper Williams Jr., of the Salem Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia, giving the eulogy.
Legacy
LeRoy Bailey Jr., senior pastor of The First CathedralThe First Cathedral
The First Cathedral exists both as a non-denominational Christian ministry based in Bloomfield, Connecticut as well as the edifice in which the ministry is held . Originally known as The 1st Baptist Church, it was founded in 1968 in Hartford, Connecticut. The pastor is Archbishop LeRoy Bailey Jr.-...
in New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
credits C. L. Franklin as one of his major influences.
Pop culture
House musician, Green Velvet released a track in 1993 entitled, "Preacher Man" which consists primarily of a C. L. Franklin sermon.Further reading
- Nick Salvatore, Singing in a Strange Land: C. L. Franklin, the Black Church, and the Transformation of America, Little Brown, 2005, Hardcover ISBN 0-316-16037-7.
- Jules Schwerin, Got to Tell It: Mahalia Jackson, Queen of Gospel, Oxford University Press, 1992, Paperback ISBN 0-19-509050-0.
- Interview with Nick Salvatore, author of Singing in a Strange Land, NPR.
- Willa Ward-Royster, How I Got Over: Clara Ward and the World-Famous Ward Singers, Temple University Press, 1997, Paperback ISBN 1-56639-490-2.
- Aretha Franklin and David Ritz, "Aretha: From These Roots," Villard Books (a division of Random House), 1999, Hardcover ISBN 0-375-50033-2.