The early 20th century saw a steady growth of the African American middle class. Following the end of World War I, African Americans were filled with a sense of pride for their service. Unfortunately, American society was not ready to grant them the right to celebrate their patriotism or exercise their rights as American citizens. African Americans were forced into segregated communities, which came with disadvantages but also unique opportunities. Baltimore was a shining example of the uniqueness of the Black experience. As African Americans began migrating north, leaving the economically devastated Deep South, they began to settle in cities. At the time, the Deep South (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama Mississippi, and Florida) had not fully recovered from the American Civil War and many African Americans found themselves in extreme poverty. They found themselves bound to former plantations under the Sharecropping system and the forced labor contracts with which it came. Often the children of those trapped in the Sharecropping system left the South in search of better economic opportunities. To many, this meant traveling to the North where cities provided opportunities for skilled and unskilled labor. While not in the North, Baltimore was considered “north enough” for many, particularly those from North Carolina.

African Americans migrating northward to Baltimore began settling in the Upton neighborhood around 1900. By 1920, the neighborhood had developed into a hub of activity and the center of African American life. The neighborhood’s Pennsylvania Avenue became the center of the African American entertainment industry and nightlife for the city. Churches such as Bethel A.M.E. and Sharp Street United Methodist Church began moving into the area. Black businesses including the burgeoning Afro-American newspaper, founded by Rev. William M. Alexander, and sold at auction to Mr. John Henry Murphy, Sr. – father of Brother Carl James Murphy – for $200, also located themselves in the area. At the time, 25,000 African Americans lived in West Baltimore. Brother W.E.B. DuBois often cited Baltimore’s Upton neighborhood as a shining example of development within the black community.

Thus, Delta Lambda Chapter was born during a particularly active period in American history, which saw African Americans increasingly active in the struggle for civil rights. The black middle class saw their fortunes slowly rise even in the face of extreme racism and prejudice. Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity was beginning to connect brothers who finished college but wanted to remain active with their fraternity; they joined what became known as graduate chapters (now alumni chapters).

It was in the spirit of fraternity that Delta Lambda chapter was born on May 23, 1919. The charter members chose to form a chapter to build a closer bond between brothers in the city. With the motto, “Watch Us Grow,” in their statement to the fraternity, the men announced that they felt “the ‘call’ of closer union” and wanted to develop a “better understanding and organization” amongst the brothers in the city. The trailblazers of Delta Lambda were: Brothers William Norman Bishop, Simeon Saunders Booker, Heyward Elbert Caldwell, Raymond Tunstall Carpenter, Reverend Beal Elliott, Walter Benjamin Garvin, James Henry Hilburn, James “Jay” Garland McRae, Carl James Murphy, Louis Hezekiah Russell, and Joseph Lincoln Shelton.

Early meetings were held at the homes of brothers who lived in the area. Meetings were also held at the Druid Hill Avenue Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) facilities and the former Eutaw Street offices of the Afro-American Newspaper. Once established, the men of Delta Lambda began to actively advocate for the improvement of African American life throughout the city. The members of the chapter were some of the most politically active in the city. Its membership included Howard University Law School graduate William L. Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald was the first African American to pass the written bar exam for the State of Maryland. He was also a member of the Baltimore City Council from 1919 – 1923. In the field of education, the chapter touted Brother Earl S. Britt. A graduate of Coppin Teachers College, Britt taught at the Henry Highland Garnet School (School No. 103) in Baltimore and would later serve as a member of the famed Montford Point Marines, the first group of African Americans allowed to join the U.S. Marine Corps. Brother Harry A. Cole, Esq. became Maryland’s first Black state Senator and the first Black to serve on the Maryland Court of Appeals.

Brother Walter T. Dixon, Sr., Esq. served as City Councilman for Baltimore’s Fourth District in 1955, making him the first Black elected to Baltimore’s City Council in twenty years. Brother Simeon S. Booker, Sr. served for years as the Executive Secretary of the Druid Hill Avenue YMCA; raising the funds to erect the building on Druid Hill Avenue. Brother Miles W. Connor, Ph.D. served as the first president of Coppin State University. Brother William Alfred Carroll Hughes served as the counsel to the Baltimore Branch of the NAACP and collaborated on civil rights strategies with a young Brother Thurgood Marshall, before and after he and Brother Charles Hamilton Houston transitioned to the national office of the NAACP, as they all collaborated on the civil rights strategies of which we benefit today. Brother Furman L. Templeton served as Executive Secretary of the Baltimore Urban League for 25 years. Brother Clarence C. Jackson, Jr. served as a director for the Playground Athletic League, Baltimore’s precursor to the Baltimore City Recreation & Parks. Brother William H. Murphy, Sr. was the third African American to attend the University of Maryland Law School.

Brother Frank J. Ellis served as the first African-American on the Board of Directors for Big Brothers of America and ascended to the level of Bishop in the Church of God in Christ. Brother Charles P. Howard, Esq. is credited as being the founder of Maryland’s first Black corporate law firm, but is often overlooked for having begun a weekly newspaper – The Iowa Bystander – with his cousin, as a young boy in Iowa. The paper boasted a readership of 10,000 and referenced itself as the “oldest weekly published west of the Mississippi River. Brother J. Hiram Butler became one of the first African Americans hired by the Baltimore City Police Department; becoming the first Black detective, the first Black sergeant, and the first Black lieutenant. Brother Henry G. Parks and Brother Raymond V. Haysbert would steer Parks Sausages company to be the African American company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Brother Haysbert would later be credited as the first African American to lead a company through a leveraged buyout. State Senator, Brother Clarence W. Blount would become the first African American to serve as the Majority Leader in the Maryland Senate. Brother Alphonso R. Cottman founded the James Mosher Little League and in conjunction with a former teammate, the Morgan State University (then College) Athletic Hall of Fame. Brother Luna I. Mishoe would create the development of the Theory of Eigen Functions and after becoming president of Delaware State College (now University) he would implement the institution’s first three graduate programs. The Chapter boasts of having had seven college presidents on its roll; no other Alpha Chapter can make this claim!

Since organizing on April 28, 1947, the Alpha Wives have staunchly supported Delta Lambda Chapter, making substantial financial contributions and act as hostesses at the various chapter and fraternity functions. The Alpha Wives were incorporated July 12, 2000. On November 3, 1967, the Chapter formed the Delta Lambda Housing Foundation, Inc. and subsequently changed the name to Delta Lambda Educational Foundation in 1986 and then Delta Lambda Foundation in 1997. The foundation has 501(c)(3) status.

For two consecutive years, 1999 – 2000, Delta Lambda was chosen as the Eastern Region’s Chapter of the Year and represented the Eastern Region at both the Dallas and Atlanta General Conventions. The Chapter won the Atlanta competition in 2000, thus being named the Millennium Alumni Chapter of the Year. Today, the roster of Delta Lambda is equally star-studded. Among our ranks are physicians, ministers, public servants, school teachers and administrators, lawyers, dentists, entrepreneurs, college professors and administrators, and retired personnel from many areas of community life. As we look forward to continued progress as a chapter, we pledge in the words of the second verse of our Fraternity Hymn (which we seldom sing):

“We hold ever aloft noble ideas and aims, Carrying out earth’s and heaven’s grand command, Our true hearts ever strive, success’ goal to attain, That our Fraternity’s (and Chapter’s) praises may be sung.”