Matthew Wesley Clair
Matthew Wesley Clair was an American minister, and newspaper editor. He was one of the first African-American bishops in the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Biography
Clair was born on October 21, 1865, in Union, West Virginia. He was a son of Anthony and Ollie Clair, both were former slaves. In 1880, Clair joined the Methodist Church.He attended Morgan College in Baltimore. In 1884, he won the G. V. Leech Prize for theology, and in 1887, he won the Baldwin Prize for English oratory.
Clair and Robert E. Jones were appointed bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1920, becoming the first black people to receive that title. Clair was assigned to Monrovia, Liberia. Prior to his appointment, he served as District Superintendent for the Church in Washington, D.C.
In 1926, Clair was transferred to Covington, Kentucky. His territory included all of Kentucky and Tennessee. He would serve there until his retirement in 1936.
In March 1890, he edited the newspaper the Methodist Banner. He was assisted by his wife Fannie in the newspaper editing role.
Clair and wife, Fannie Meade Walker, were the parents of five children: including Matthew W. Clair Jr., William O. Clair, and John A. Clair. After Fannie's death in 1925, he married Eva F. Wilson a year later.