MERRIMACK VALLEY BRANCH

Our History

In 1916, a group of Lowell citizens allied themselves with the Boston Branch of the NAACP to form a Lowell Branch, which was organized by Harold M. Wingood, President. After WWI, the Lowell Branch was suspended. In 1946, another committee composed of Harold Wingood, Samuel Crayton Sr., James H .Ward, Rev. Julius Mitchell and Rev. Robert Smith to name a few, was formed.

 

After several successful organizational meetings at Third Baptist Church in Lawrence, MA, they applied for and were issued a charter for the Merrimack Valley Branch of the NAACP. The charter included Lowell, Lawrence, Haverhill and adjacent towns. It was effective on October 14, 1946. The first President was Samuel Crayton Sr. In 1947, due to a technicality the Branch has to be reorganized and Everette Lawrence was elected the next President.

 

The first fully paid life member of the Branch was Thomas J. Whitting. In September 1970, students from Lowell State College were granted $6200 in financial aid. In 1978, a suit was filed with the US Department of Revenue against the cities of Lowell and Lawrence, alleging racial discrimination in city employment. The complaint was resolved in 1981 in favor of the Branch. In 1984, the Branch recorded the largest Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast.