G. E. Lowman
Encyclopedia
Guerdon Elmer Lowman, more familiarly G. E. Lowman (November 16, 1897 – January 18, 1965) was an American
Christian
clergyman and a pioneering international radio
evangelist
beginning in 1930, following a successful business career.
He was called by contemporary newspapers "a noted preacher", whose "forceful sermons" addressed "timely and interesting topics". His non-denominational
radio ministry had a worldwide audience from the 1930s until 1965.
In his early twenties, he began a commercial electrical contracting company. Later, he acquired a spinoff
supermarket
chain in the Baltimore region from Sanitary Grocery Stores, which he renamed "Twin Food".) He is the grandfather of James G. Howes
, who is also active in the communications business and church activities.
minister and began preaching at churches and missions in the Baltimore area. He also became a familiar sight in the city, using a specially equipped bus with a platform and loudspeakers to hold outdoor evangelistic rallies on Baltimore street corners.
So popular was his preaching that G. E. Lowman founded the Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle in 1930, building a large stone church at the corner of Federal and Wolfe Streets, in an east Baltimore neighborhood near Johns Hopkins Hospital
. A Lutheran church had previously occupied a portion of the site since 1897, and the newly constructed Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle incorporated the former structure in its design, more than tripling the building's overall size. Several large stained glass windows were installed in the new edifice, one of which was donated by a Titanic survivor. Atop the Tabernacle's west tower was an illuminated cross, which revolved when services were underway, one of four revolving crosses in existence in the U.S. at the time.
The newly completed church was dedicated on October 19, 1930, and Pastor Lowman began weekly live radio broadcasts of the services on Wednesdays and Sundays. On the church's first anniversary in October 1931, the Baltimore Post
reported: "The Gospel Tabernacle is interdenominational in character and from 10 to 15 different denominations are represented at the services". In celebration of the anniversary, "jubilee services were held nightly for two weeks, with ministers from different churches conducting the services," the newspaper said. Further expansion of the church occurred in 1933 with the addition of a south transept
and a second balcony to accommodate the overflow crowds.
The Tabernacle broadcasts eventually reached coast-to-coast in the U.S., including such high-powered, Class 1-A clear channel radio stations as WABC
in New York City
, WLS
in Chicago
, and WBT
in Charlotte, North Carolina
. Worldwide, the program was broadcast on major mediumwave and shortwave stations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia, originated by flagship station WBAL (AM)
. By the late 1930s, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
said of Rev. Lowman, "the noted radio evangelist and founder of the Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle ... is well-known to Pittsburghers inasmuch as his forceful sermons are transmitted here from the Baltimore Tabernacle". In August 1941, WNOX (now WNML
) in Knoxville, Tennessee
, began carrying the broadcast, which it advertised as "inspiring and timely messages by one of America's religious leaders", but six months later a controversy ensued when the radio station refused to broadcast a sermon in which Rev. Lowman mentioned the word "fornication
", prompting protests from disappointed listeners. When the program debuted on WELI
in New Haven, Connecticut
, in 1940, a radio columnist for the New Haven Register described the broadcasts as "one of America's most unique and varied religious programs, conducted by Rev. G. E. Lowman, a noted preacher who takes for his topics timely and interesting subjects that are up-to-the moment". By the late 1950s, a second weekly radio program was also carried on the Mutual Broadcasting System
network in the U.S. on Sunday nights.
The programs were also noted for their music, featuring the Tabernacle's Möller
pipe organ
accompanying the congregation singing hymn favorites. Each broadcast began with the signature theme song, "O That Will Be Glory". Daughters Ruth, Edna, and Doris sang as the "Lowman Sisters", ending each broadcast with the Maori
melody hymn, "Search Me, O God".
Pastor Lowman authored several books in the series, Prophecies for the Times. His ministry was nondenominational
. He wrote, "Many claims are made by certain religions. But no one denomination can rightfully claim that it is the only one. The true church of our Lord and Master is made up of born again people. It is not what we belong to on this earth; it is what we are in Christ".
, where it was produced and distributed by the International Gospel Broadcasters, a non-profit ministry founded by G. E. Lowman. The broadcasts ended on January 31, 1965, shortly after his death.
The former Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle sanctuary became the St. Paul Community Baptist Church, whose pastor at the time, Rev. Revels, had listened to G. E. Lowman's radio broadcasts while working as a Pullman porter in his younger years.
on September 14, 1943. Pastor Lowman was awarded a Doctor of Divinity
degree from Burton College and Seminary in Manitou Springs, Colorado
, on May 20, 1957.
The former Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle sanctuary, now the St. Paul Community Baptist Church, was designated as an historic landmark on May 6, 2009, by legislative act of the City of Baltimore, because of its "association with historic events and important people". In making the award announcement at City Hall ceremonies, Mayor Sheila Dixon
said, "The City of Baltimore cherishes these jewels because they are unique and authentic ... the real places that tell the real Baltimore stories".
, to St. Petersburg, Florida
, in 1960, where he died five years later on January 18, 1965, of acute leukemia
, ending the worldwide radio ministry of the International Gospel Broadcasters. He is interred at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens
in Timonium, Maryland.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
clergyman and a pioneering international 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...
evangelist
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
beginning in 1930, following a successful business career.
He was called by contemporary newspapers "a noted preacher", whose "forceful sermons" addressed "timely and interesting topics". His non-denominational
Non-denominational Christianity
In Christianity, nondenominational institutions or churches are those not formally aligned with an established denomination, or that remain otherwise officially autonomous. This, however, does not preclude an identifiable standard among such congregations...
radio ministry had a worldwide audience from the 1930s until 1965.
Early years
G. E. Lowman was born in Baltimore, Maryland, where he worked in the local shipyards as a teenager, becoming a Christian at the age of 17. He married Minnie Wagner on December 8, 1917, and they had six children.In his early twenties, he began a commercial electrical contracting company. Later, he acquired a spinoff
Spin out
A spin-out, also known as a spin-off or a starburst, refers to a type of corporate action where a company "splits off" sections of itself as a separate business....
supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
chain in the Baltimore region from Sanitary Grocery Stores, which he renamed "Twin Food".) He is the grandfather of James G. Howes
James G. Howes
James Guerdon Howes is an American businessman in the aviation and communications fields and former United States Air Force traffic management officer. He holds a commercial pilot's license with instrument and multi-engine ratings, and a Master of Business Administration degree. Howes has been a...
, who is also active in the communications business and church activities.
Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle
In the late 1920s, G. E. Lowman was ordained as a MethodistMethodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
minister and began preaching at churches and missions in the Baltimore area. He also became a familiar sight in the city, using a specially equipped bus with a platform and loudspeakers to hold outdoor evangelistic rallies on Baltimore street corners.
So popular was his preaching that G. E. Lowman founded the Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle in 1930, building a large stone church at the corner of Federal and Wolfe Streets, in an east Baltimore neighborhood near Johns Hopkins Hospital
Johns Hopkins Hospital
The Johns Hopkins Hospital is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, located in Baltimore, Maryland . It was founded using money from a bequest by philanthropist Johns Hopkins...
. A Lutheran church had previously occupied a portion of the site since 1897, and the newly constructed Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle incorporated the former structure in its design, more than tripling the building's overall size. Several large stained glass windows were installed in the new edifice, one of which was donated by a Titanic survivor. Atop the Tabernacle's west tower was an illuminated cross, which revolved when services were underway, one of four revolving crosses in existence in the U.S. at the time.
The newly completed church was dedicated on October 19, 1930, and Pastor Lowman began weekly live radio broadcasts of the services on Wednesdays and Sundays. On the church's first anniversary in October 1931, the Baltimore Post
Baltimore News-American
The Baltimore News-American was a Baltimore, Maryland, broadsheet newspaper with a continuous lineage of more than two hundred years of Baltimore newspapers. Its final edition was published on May 27, 1986.-History:...
reported: "The Gospel Tabernacle is interdenominational in character and from 10 to 15 different denominations are represented at the services". In celebration of the anniversary, "jubilee services were held nightly for two weeks, with ministers from different churches conducting the services," the newspaper said. Further expansion of the church occurred in 1933 with the addition of a south transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
and a second balcony to accommodate the overflow crowds.
The Tabernacle broadcasts eventually reached coast-to-coast in the U.S., including such high-powered, Class 1-A clear channel radio stations as WABC
WABC (AM)
WABC , known as "NewsTalkRadio 77 WABC" is a radio station in New York City. Owned by the broadcasting division of Cumulus Media, the station broadcasts on a clear channel and is the flagship station of Cumulus Media Networks...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, WLS
WLS (AM)
WLS is a Chicago clear-channel AM station on 890 kHz. It uses C-QUAM AM stereo and transmits with 50,000 watts from transmitter and towers on the south edge of Tinley Park, Illinois....
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and WBT
WBT (AM)
WBT is a radio station in Charlotte, North Carolina, broadcasting on the AM dial at 1110 kHz. A 50,000-watt clear-channel station, it can be heard across most of the eastern half of North America at night. It simulcasts on WBT-FM, at 99.3 MHz in Chester, South Carolina. It is owned by Greater...
in Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
. Worldwide, the program was broadcast on major mediumwave and shortwave stations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia, originated by flagship station WBAL (AM)
WBAL (AM)
WBAL is a news-talk radio station located in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. WBAL broadcasts on a clear channel frequency with 50 kilowatts of power. Owned by the Hearst Corporation, WBAL's tri-mast transmitters are located in Randallstown, Maryland...
. By the late 1930s, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
said of Rev. Lowman, "the noted radio evangelist and founder of the Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle ... is well-known to Pittsburghers inasmuch as his forceful sermons are transmitted here from the Baltimore Tabernacle". In August 1941, WNOX (now WNML
WNML
WNML, WNML-FM, and WNRX are sports radio stations serving the Knoxville, Tennessee area. They broadcast on AM 990 and 2 FM frequencies, 99.1 & 99.3 . The stations are under ownership of Cumulus Media...
) in Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
, began carrying the broadcast, which it advertised as "inspiring and timely messages by one of America's religious leaders", but six months later a controversy ensued when the radio station refused to broadcast a sermon in which Rev. Lowman mentioned the word "fornication
Fornication
Fornication typically refers to consensual sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other. For many people, the term carries a moral or religious association, but the significance of sexual acts to which the term is applied varies between religions, societies and cultures. The...
", prompting protests from disappointed listeners. When the program debuted on WELI
WELI
WELI is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to New Haven, Connecticut, USA, it serves the New Haven and Bridgeport areas...
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...
, in 1940, a radio columnist for the New Haven Register described the broadcasts as "one of America's most unique and varied religious programs, conducted by Rev. G. E. Lowman, a noted preacher who takes for his topics timely and interesting subjects that are up-to-the moment". By the late 1950s, a second weekly radio program was also carried on the Mutual Broadcasting System
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
network in the U.S. on Sunday nights.
The programs were also noted for their music, featuring the Tabernacle's Möller
M. P. Moller
Mathias Peter Møller was a prolific Danish organ builder. He was a native of the Danish island of Bornholm. He founded the M.P. Moller Pipe Organ Company in Greencastle, Pennsylvania in 1875...
pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
accompanying the congregation singing hymn favorites. Each broadcast began with the signature theme song, "O That Will Be Glory". Daughters Ruth, Edna, and Doris sang as the "Lowman Sisters", ending each broadcast with the Maori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
melody hymn, "Search Me, O God".
Pastor Lowman authored several books in the series, Prophecies for the Times. His ministry was nondenominational
Non-denominational Christianity
In Christianity, nondenominational institutions or churches are those not formally aligned with an established denomination, or that remain otherwise officially autonomous. This, however, does not preclude an identifiable standard among such congregations...
. He wrote, "Many claims are made by certain religions. But no one denomination can rightfully claim that it is the only one. The true church of our Lord and Master is made up of born again people. It is not what we belong to on this earth; it is what we are in Christ".
International Gospel Broadcasters
The weekly radio broadcast originated live from the Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle on Sunday mornings at 11 a.m. until the final service there on December 13, 1959. The program then moved to studios in St. Petersburg, FloridaSt. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St...
, where it was produced and distributed by the International Gospel Broadcasters, a non-profit ministry founded by G. E. Lowman. The broadcasts ended on January 31, 1965, shortly after his death.
The former Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle sanctuary became the St. Paul Community Baptist Church, whose pastor at the time, Rev. Revels, had listened to G. E. Lowman's radio broadcasts while working as a Pullman porter in his younger years.
Awards and honors
In honor of his ministry, he was presented with the Key to the City of Baltimore by then-Mayor Theodore R. McKeldinTheodore McKeldin
Theodore Roosevelt McKeldin , a member of the United States Republican Party, was the 53rd Governor of Maryland in the United States from 1951 to 1959....
on September 14, 1943. Pastor Lowman was awarded a Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
degree from Burton College and Seminary in Manitou Springs, Colorado
Manitou Springs, Colorado
The city of Manitou Springs is a Home Rule Municipality located in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. The population was 4,980 at the 2000 census.Students are served by Manitou Springs School District 14 and Manitou Springs High School....
, on May 20, 1957.
The former Baltimore Gospel Tabernacle sanctuary, now the St. Paul Community Baptist Church, was designated as an historic landmark on May 6, 2009, by legislative act of the City of Baltimore, because of its "association with historic events and important people". In making the award announcement at City Hall ceremonies, Mayor Sheila Dixon
Sheila Dixon
Sheila Ann Dixon served as the forty-eighth Mayor of Baltimore, Maryland. When former Mayor Martin O'Malley was sworn in as Governor on January 17, 2007, Dixon, a Democrat, became mayor and served out the remaining year of O'Malley's term. In November 2007, she was elected mayor...
said, "The City of Baltimore cherishes these jewels because they are unique and authentic ... the real places that tell the real Baltimore stories".
Death
G. E. Lowman moved from his home in Hampton, MarylandHampton, Maryland
Hampton is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland. The population was 5,004 at the 2000 census. Hampton is often considered a subdivision of the nearby community of Towson and is located just north of Baltimore City, Maryland, about twenty minutes...
, to St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St...
, in 1960, where he died five years later on January 18, 1965, of acute leukemia
Acute myeloid leukemia
Acute myeloid leukemia , also known as acute myelogenous leukemia, is a cancer of the myeloid line of blood cells, characterized by the rapid growth of abnormal white blood cells that accumulate in the bone marrow and interfere with the production of normal blood cells. AML is the most common acute...
, ending the worldwide radio ministry of the International Gospel Broadcasters. He is interred at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens
Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens
Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens and Mausoleum is a cemetery and mausoleum in Timonium, Maryland, a fashionable Baltimore County suburban community. It is located at 200 E. Padonia Rd, about two miles from the intersection of Interstate 83 and Padonia Road...
in Timonium, Maryland.