Centennial Celebration to Memorialize the life story of the late Pastor Wroten McQuirter, Sr.

Biography of Reverend Wroten McQuirter, Sr.
October 23, 1921- September 9, 2007

Reverend Wroten McQuirter, Sr.

Wroten McQuirter, Sr. was born in Flora (Madison County) Mississippi on October 23, 1921.  He was the only son and fifth child of the late Wroten and Albirda Shelby McQuirter. Shortly after the death of his mother and at the age of five, three of his four older sisters – Earlene, Christine and Josephine – also died. He moved to and grew up on the sharecropping farm with his uncle and aunt, Joseph and Annie Shelby.  Feelings of homeless, helpless, and hopeless became his galvanizing force. 

He longed for two things – a family and an education. On June 8, 1941, he married Annie Mae Murriel, and to this union nine children were born – one daughter and eight sons. Their children’s families added seventeen grandsons, seven granddaughters, eleven great-grandsons, ten great-granddaughters and one great-great-grandson.  He often bragged on himself, “…and I’m the Originator.” He worked hard to provide for his family and recognized that opportunities for his children were greater than he could imagine.  He became actively involved in church work and networked with the late Evangelist Irvin Yonkers at Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. Their work resulted in the organization of “Bible Clubs” which rapidly spread throughout Hinds County.  These Clubs had a powerful influence for peace among all men during the tumultuous civil rights era. This ministry forged Rev. McQuirter’s six decades of pastorage in Clinton at St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church; in Bolton at Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church; in Jackson at St. Matthews Missionary Baptist Church; and in Terry at Salem Missionary Baptist Church.  

Recognizing the potential of a greater impact, Reverend McQuirter’s religious education consisted of a Junior College Course Diploma, Mississippi Baptist Seminary and the Bachelor of Theology Degree, Natchez College.  Further studies included a Ten-Year Religious Life Program, Alcorn State University.  He also studied at Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, IL.  He received the Certificate of Education Diploma from the Sunday School Publishing Board in Nashville, Tennessee. In the Mississippi Baptist State     Congress of Christian Education, he taught a number of subjects including, History of the Early Church–Book of Acts; Ministering Sunday School; Stewardship; Concise Theology; and Evangelism. He was recognized for his outstanding contributions to education by the American Baptist College National Baptist Convention, Minister’s Division–Congress of Christian Education.  He served as Dean and Moderator of the Original Jackson Missionary Baptist District Association; President of the Hinds County Council for Church and Social Action; President of the Clinton Ministerial Workers Council; Dean of the Congress of Christian Education; President of the Mississippi Baptist State Singing Convention; Board Member, Mississippi General Missionary Baptist State Convention; Vice President of the Mississippi General Missionary Baptist State Convention; Member of the National Baptist Convention U.S.A., Inc.; President of the Terry Ministerial Fellowship; and Member of the Moderator Department of the National  Baptist Convention, U.S.A. Inc.

He and his wife raised their family in Clinton where he committed himself to social and justice changes. With six of the McQuirter children enrolled in the Hinds County School system, Reverend McQuirter became appalled with the disparity in the educational opportunities under the doctrine of “separate but equal” school system. In the early 1960’s, he became a member of the Board of Trustees for Sumner Hill High School and served on the first Board of Directors for Project Head Start in Clinton. In 1968, he led the movement for  desegregation when he enrolled two of his younger children in the Clinton Municipal Separate School District. For more than four decades, he was an activist with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), dedicated to the cause for equal educational opportunities for all people through non-violent means. 

In 1988, the Urban League of Jackson presented the Wroten McQuirter Family the Robert Smith Family of the Year Award for its outstanding professional achievements. In 1991, the family became the recipient of the Southeastern Association of Women Family Recognition Award. Their 60-year marriage was featured in Jet Magazine, July 2002 edition. He was appointed by Governor Bill Allain to the Medicare Advisory Board and Prisoner Reform Program – Second Chance.  He was a co-organizer of the Clinton Christian Community Corporation.  The Mayor and Aldermen of the City of Clinton recognized his outstanding citizenship when October 31, 2004 was proclaimed as WROTEN MCQUIRTER DAY in the City of Clinton, for which The Honorable Bennie Thompson entered the proclamation into the Congressional Records of the United States House of Representatives.

This centennial legacy has shown us how to triumph over adversities, to realize our potential and thereby fulfil our Divine purpose to reach life’s destiny.