feb 18, 1877 - Bishop John A. Gregg

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On February 18, 1877, John Andrew Gregg was born in Eureka, Kansas, to Alexander and Eliza F. Gregg. He grew up in Lawrence, Kansas.
During the Spanish-American War, Gregg served with the 23rd Kansas Volunteers, and within six months, he was promoted from the rank of sergeant to that of lieutenant. Gregg was one of the few African Americans to reach the rank at that time. In 1898, he entered both the ministry of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and the University of Kansas.
Shortly after receiving his bachelor's degree, Gregg applied for the A.M.E.'s overseas service. He was sent to South Africa as a teacher and administrator. In 1906, he returned and served congregations in both Leavenworth and St. Joseph, Missouri. In 1913, he became the president of Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, Florida. Later, he served as president of Wilberforce University from 1920 to 1924.
In 1924, Gregg became Bishop of the A.M.E. church, appointed to the 17th Episcopal District in South Africa. Over the next several decades, he would serve in the 5th and 4th Episcopal Districts. In 1926, Gregg was elected the first African-American president of Howard University but declined the position. During World War ll, at the invitation of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Gregg explicitly visited African American troops on the United States war fronts as a representative of the fraternal Council of Negro Churches.

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