Robert Lincoln Poston
Encyclopedia
Robert T. Lincoln Poston, (February 25, 1891-March 16, 1924 At Sea), was born in Hopkinsville, Tennessee
. He came from a family of journalists and writers. His father, Ephraim Poston, was a teacher, poet and graduate of Roger Williams University in Nashville
, Tennessee
who authored Manual on Parliamentary Proceedings, 1905 and Pastoral Poems, 1906. Poston's mother was the former Mollie Cox of Oak Grove, Kentucky
. Poston had six siblings: Fred Douglass, Ulysses Grant, Ephraim, Jr., Roberta, Lillian, and Theodore Roosevelt Poston.
Poston attended Nashville's Walden University
, as well as Howard University
. He became a newspaper publisher and editor while in Detroit, Michigan
. Later, he contributed poems, literary criticism, and sometimes editorials to the UNIA-ACL's Negro World
newspaper. He attained the position of Assistant Secretary-General of the UNIA in 1921 and then was promoted to Secretary General in 1922. His brother Ulysses served as associate editor of the Negro World. Robert and Ulysses were among the co-directors of a play the UNIA dramatic club put on, in 1922, entitled "Tallaboo".
Poston married the sculptor Augusta Savage
in 1923. In December of that year, Poston was the leader of a delegation sent to Liberia
by the UNIA. The purpose of the trip was to finalize arrangements for a mass emigration of African Americans to Liberia. He was accompanied on this trip by Henrietta Vinton Davis
and Milton Van Lowe, among others. Poston and the others met with President King of Liberia, but they were not ultimately able to obtain the permissions and aid that they required. Poston could not hide his disappointment on the voyage home. While on board the SS President Grant, he contracted a fever and died of lobar pneumonia. On March 19, 1924 he was posthumously given the rank of Prince of Africa by the UNIA during an elaborate state funeral at Liberty Hall.
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. He came from a family of journalists and writers. His father, Ephraim Poston, was a teacher, poet and graduate of Roger Williams University in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
who authored Manual on Parliamentary Proceedings, 1905 and Pastoral Poems, 1906. Poston's mother was the former Mollie Cox of Oak Grove, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. Poston had six siblings: Fred Douglass, Ulysses Grant, Ephraim, Jr., Roberta, Lillian, and Theodore Roosevelt Poston.
Poston attended Nashville's Walden University
Walden University
Walden University is a private, for-profit, specialized distance learning institution of higher education. Headquartered in the Mills District in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Walden University offers Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Master of Business Administration, Master of Public...
, as well as Howard University
Howard University
Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
. He became a newspaper publisher and editor while in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. Later, he contributed poems, literary criticism, and sometimes editorials to the UNIA-ACL's Negro World
Negro World
Negro World was a weekly newspaper, established in January 1918 in New York City, which served as the voice of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League, an organization founded by Marcus Garvey in 1914...
newspaper. He attained the position of Assistant Secretary-General of the UNIA in 1921 and then was promoted to Secretary General in 1922. His brother Ulysses served as associate editor of the Negro World. Robert and Ulysses were among the co-directors of a play the UNIA dramatic club put on, in 1922, entitled "Tallaboo".
Poston married the sculptor Augusta Savage
Augusta Savage
Augusta Savage, born Augusta Christine Fells was an African-American sculptor associated with the Harlem Renaissance. She was also a teacher and her studio was important to the careers of a rising generation of artists who would become nationally known...
in 1923. In December of that year, Poston was the leader of a delegation sent to Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
by the UNIA. The purpose of the trip was to finalize arrangements for a mass emigration of African Americans to Liberia. He was accompanied on this trip by Henrietta Vinton Davis
Henrietta Vinton Davis
Henrietta Vinton Davis was an American elocutionist, dramatist, and impersonator.Lady Davis was proclaimed by Marcus Garvey to be the "greatest woman of the race today"...
and Milton Van Lowe, among others. Poston and the others met with President King of Liberia, but they were not ultimately able to obtain the permissions and aid that they required. Poston could not hide his disappointment on the voyage home. While on board the SS President Grant, he contracted a fever and died of lobar pneumonia. On March 19, 1924 he was posthumously given the rank of Prince of Africa by the UNIA during an elaborate state funeral at Liberty Hall.