In the midst of the Great Depression, Henry A. Boyd, secretary of the National Baptist Publishing Board submitted the 34th Annual Report of the National Baptist Publishing Board to the chairman and members of the Board. Boyd notes, "We are pleased to report that notwithstanding the unusual financial depression and the shortage of funds, with the unemployment situation, there has been only a slight decrease in the circulation during the past year, of these publications." Help us transcribe this report and learn more about the workings and publications of the National Baptist Publishing Board.
Richard Henry Boyd, commonly known as the Rev. Dr. R. H. Boyd, was a minister and businessman who founded the National Baptist Publishing Board and the National Baptist Convention of America, Inc. Born enslaved in Mississippi, Boyd moved to Texas after the Civil War and was ordained as a minister in 1871. Boyd served at several churches throughout the state of Texas and as a district missionary for the Texas Negro Baptist Convention. While in Texas, Boyd became concerned that Baptist publications and Sunday school materials produced by white people did not meet the needs of African American Baptists. In 1896, Boyd moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and founded the National Baptist Publishing Board so that African American Baptists could produce and consume their own religious materials. The National Baptist Publishing Board printed and distributed periodicals, song and lesson books, and various other spiritually themed titles for African American Baptist churches. By 1921, the board was printing 15 different periodicals with a combined circulation of over 7.5 million. More than 120 years after its founding, the National Baptist Publishing Board, now known as the R.H. Boyd Publishing Company, continues to provide resources for African American churches and communities across the country.
