Chandler Family papers

Gladstone Lewis Chandler (1903-1965) was born in the British West Indies and raised in Andover, Massachusetts where he attended Punchard High School in Andover before earning his B.A. from Middlebury College and later his M.A. from Harvard University.

It was while Mr. Chandler was enrolled at Harvard that Dr. John Hope, former President of Morehouse College and at the time President of Atlanta University, invited him to come to Morehouse and the Atlanta University Affiliation as part of the English faculty. Professor Chandler had previously taught at Claflin College and later at Winston-Salem Teachers College after graduating from Middlebury.

Chandler was an English professor at Morehouse College from 1931 until his death in 1965. During his 34 year tenure, he served as the faculty representative for the Maroon Tiger, the student-run newspaper, and taught three generations of Morehouse graduates, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Outside of his career as a professor, Chandler was also involved in the Atlanta community as an active civic worker and the leader of campaigns for the YMCA, the Community Chest, and the UNCF. He was a member of the St. Paul's Episcopal Church as active participant in the Vestry and the Men's Club. He also served as president of the neighborhood club Fountain Drive-Morris Brown Drive community club , where he led a successful battle to prevent a highway from being built through the neighborhood. Beyond his civic activity, Chandler was the first African AMerican to conduct a campaign for a mayoral candidate in the city of Atlanta.

Chandler was married to Erdie Lee Wade and the couple had a son Gladstone Chandler Jr., a daughter Beth I. Chandler, and a stepson G. Whitte Jordan.