Reverend Adams Memorial Unveiling When: June 30, 2018

Biography written by Denise Porter-Ross

The legacy of Reverend Dr. Clyde Adams, who passed on February 21, 2017 at the age of 102, was immortalized with the Reverend Dr. Clyde Adams Memorial Way marker now standing tall at the corner of South Anthony Blvd. and Creighton Ave., by Links Wonderland.

Rev. Adams came to Fort Wayne in 1950 to pastor the Union Baptist Church.  For nearly 50 years he affected the face and the fate of Fort Wayne with progressive thinking and inspired and enriched the hearts and souls of his congregation with his ministry.

Under his leadership the church built a new edifice at 2200 Smith Street.  Services to the community included a computer classroom, the Head Start Program, and the G.E.D. study program.

He was President of the Fort Wayne Chapter of the NAACP and worked closely with the late William Watson, then Executive Director of the Urban League, in the court fight to desegregate local restaurants, movie theaters, banks, and hospitals.  He spearheaded a boycott against the Fort Wayne Community Schools which brought about the integration of the elementary school programs.

He was instrumental in forming a rehabilitative program, One Church, One Offender, Inc., in 1984.  In 1995, he received the coveted Ecumenical Service Award for aligning church and community in Fort Wayne.  He was also awarded the Liberty Bell award by the Allen County Bar Association.