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Verda Welcome
Member of the Maryland Senate
In office
January 2, 1963 – January 12, 1983
Preceded byJ. Alvin Jones
Succeeded byTroy Brailey
ConstituencyFourth District of Baltimore City (1962–1974)
40th district (1974–1982)
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates from the Fourth District of Baltimore City
In office
January 7, 1959 – January 2, 1963
Preceded byEmory Cole
Truly Hatchett
Morton C. Pollack
Succeeded byJoseph Abramson
Harvey A. Epstein
Clarence Mitchell III
Ernest D. Young
Personal details
Born
Verda Mae Freeman

(1907-03-18)March 18, 1907
Lake Lure, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedApril 22, 1990(1990-04-22) (aged 83)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Henry C. Welcome
​
(m. 1935)​
Children1
EducationMorgan State College (BA)
New York University (MA)

Verda Mae Freeman Welcome (March 18, 1907 – April 22, 1990) was an American teacher, civil rights leader, and politician who was a member of the Maryland Senate who represented west Baltimore from 1963 to 1983. She previously served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from 1959 to 1962. A member of the Democratic Party, Welcome was the second Black woman to be elected to a state senate in the United States (Cora Mae Brown was the first in 1952) and the first Black woman to be elected to both the Maryland Senate and the Maryland House of Delegates.

Early life and education

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Born as Verda Mae Freeman, one of sixteen children of John Nuborn and Ella Theodocia Freeman, Verda Welcome was born on a small farm in Lake Lure (previously known as Uree), North Carolina.[1][2][3] In 1929, she moved to Baltimore, and graduated from Coppin State Teachers College three years later.[4] She married Dr. Henry C. Welcome[5] in 1935. She received a bachelor's degree in history from Morgan State College in 1939, and completed a master's degree in history at New York University in 1943.[1] Between 1934 and 1945, Welcome taught at public schools in Baltimore.[4][6] She was a life member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority and the NAACP.[7]

Political career

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In 1958, Welcome was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates to represent the Fourth District of Baltimore City, becoming the first black woman to hold the position, which she held for three years.[2] Elected to the Maryland Senate in 1962, she was the second African-American woman in the United States to be elected to hold a state senate seat.[1][4][8]

In April 1964, Welcome survived an assassination attempt; two men were convicted.[1][6]

In 1967, Welcome worked towards eliminating Maryland's racial segregation laws which had been in place since slavery was legal.[1][2]

Welcome was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1968, 1972, and 1976.[6] She served in political office until 1983 after she was defeated in the September 1982 Democratic primary election by state delegate Troy Brailey.[9]

Personal life

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Welcome married Dr. Henry C. Welcome, who worked as a surgeon at Maryland General Hospital for 40 years,[10] in 1935.[11] Together, they had one daughter, Mary Sue Mercer. Henry Welcome died on July 5, 1979, after suffering a stroke while attending a meeting of the Maryland State Board of Higher Education.[10]

Welcome died on April 22, 1990, in Baltimore.[1]

Legacy

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Welcome was awarded a Woman of the Year award in 1962, which was presented by the Women's Auxiliary to the National Medical Association.[2] In 1964, Morgan State University dedicated a footbridge on its campus to Welcome.[12] In 1988, she was inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame.[2]

During the 109th United States Congress, U.S. representative Elijah Cummings introduced a resolution to rename the post office on 3000 Homewood Avenue in Baltimore, to "State Senator Verda Welcome and Dr. Henry Welcome Post Office Building". The bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives without objection on December 19, 2005, the U.S. Senate by unanimous consent on July 20, 2006, and signed into law by President George W. Bush on August 1, 2006.[13]

Welcome received honorary degrees from Howard University and the University of Maryland, College Park.[14]

Bibliography

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  • Maryland General Assembly, Verda Freeman Welcome: A Person of Principle, 1991.
  • Welcome, Verda F., My Life and Times: Verda F. Welcome As Told to James M. Abraham. Englewood Cliffs, NJ : Henry House Publishers, Inc., 1991.

Electoral history

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Maryland House of Delegates Baltimore City 4th District election, 1958[15]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Irma George Dixon 16,881 12.7
Democratic Verda F. Welcome 16,182 12.2
Democratic Jerome Robinson (incumbent) 15,730 11.9
Democratic Murray Abramson (incumbent) 15,679 11.8
Democratic Sol J. Friedman (incumbent) 15,575 11.7
Democratic Richard T. Romero 13,952 10.5
Republican Emory Cole (incumbent) 10,280 7.8
Republican Bertha C. Winston 9,570 7.2
Republican Howard D. Dixon 9,535 7.2
Republican Daniel W. Spaulding 9,239 7.0
Maryland Senate Baltimore City 4th District election, 1962[16]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Verda F. Welcome 12,498 59.9
Republican John C. Woodland 8,375 40.1
Maryland Senate Baltimore City 4th District election, 1966[17]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Clarence Mitchell III 21,813 38.8
Democratic Verda F. Welcome (incumbent) 20,338 36.2
Republican Earl Koger 8,091 14.4
Republican Archie M. Jones 5,921 10.5
Maryland Senate Baltimore City 4th District election, 1970[18]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Clarence Mitchell III (incumbent) 24,403 48.0
Democratic Verda F. Welcome (incumbent) 21,654 42.6
Republican Melvin A. Callaman 2,451 4.8
Republican Edward A. Prettyman 2,284 4.5
Maryland Senate District 40 election, 1974[19]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Verda F. Welcome (incumbent) 10,246 100.0
Maryland Senate District 40 election, 1978[20]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Verda F. Welcome (incumbent) Unopposed
Maryland Senate District 40 Democratic primary election, 1982[21]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Troy Brailey 7,863 53.7
Democratic Verda F. Welcome (incumbent) 5,799 39.6
Democratic William E. Johnson 983 6.7

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Paul McCardell. "Verda Freeman Welcome". The Baltimore Sun.
  2. ^ a b c d e Derek Powell (3 November 2005). "Verda Freeman Welcome: A Prominent Figure In Black History". The Spokesman (The Independent Newspaper of Morgan State University).
  3. ^ Welcome, Verda (1991). My Life and Times: Verda Welcome As Told to James M. Abraham. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Henry House Publishers, Inc. p. 1.
  4. ^ a b c Smith, Jessie Carney (1996). Notable Black American women. Detroit: Gale Research. pp. 698. ISBN 0-8103-9177-5.
  5. ^ "The Lady Senator". 23 March 2017.
  6. ^ a b c "Verda F. Welcome, 83, A Maryland Legislator". The New York Times. 25 April 1990.
  7. ^ "Maryland Manual, 1981-1982" (PDF). msa.maryland.gov. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  8. ^ Maryland Commission for Women. "Maryland Women's Hall of Fame - Verda Freeman Welcome". Maryland State Archives. Retrieved 29 March 2009.
  9. ^ "High Number Of Legislators Fail At Polls". The Daily Times. September 15, 1982. p. 3. Retrieved October 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ a b "Obituary for Henry C. Welcome". The Baltimore Sun. July 6, 1979. p. 6. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  11. ^ Bowles, Johnny (February 5, 1986). "The girl grew up, and helped everyone to vote". The Baltimore Sun. p. 80. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  12. ^ "Morgan Honors Verda Welcome". Baltimore Afro-American. March 23, 2017. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  13. ^ "H.R.4108 - 109th Congress (2005-2006)". congress.gov. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  14. ^ Brown, Stacy M. (February 3, 2021). "How a N.C. Farm Girl Became an Integral Force in the Fight for Black Equality". The Washington Informer. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  15. ^ "Maryland Manual, 1961-1962" (PDF). Maryland State Archives. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  16. ^ "Maryland Manual, 1961-1962" (PDF). Maryland State Archives. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  17. ^ "Maryland Manual, 1967-1968" (PDF). Maryland State Archives. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  18. ^ "Maryland Manual, 1971-1972" (PDF). Maryland State Archives. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  19. ^ "Maryland Manual, 1974-1975" (PDF). Maryland State Archives. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  20. ^ "1978 General Election Results". The Baltimore Sun. November 9, 1978. p. 13. Retrieved October 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Maryland Manual, 1983-1984" (PDF). Maryland State Archives. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
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