A00324 - The Gregorys: An Amazing American Family

 

Before continuing onto the next name on my Memorial List, I pause to reflect on the wonder of one African American family that not only left an Amherst legacy but also a monumental American legacy.  The African American family that I am referring to is the Gregory family.  

We all know that the astronaut Frederick Drew Gregory (Class of 1962) was the nephew of Charles Drew (Class of 1926). And that alone would be a significant connection.  However, it is arguable that the more prominent name is the name Gregory.  Indeed, one of the iconic photos from the 1800s is a photo of the 1898 Amherst College Baseball Team which had one black player.  That black player appears to have been the only black student at Amherst College during his college years, but he left his mark for being named the captain of the Amherst College baseball team, the first African American to be so named for any eastern college.  The name of this exemplary individual is James Francis Gregory, Class of 1898.  James Francis Gregory is the grandfather of the astronaut Frederick Drew Gregory.  

The accomplishments of James Francis Gregory are notable.  He went on to become a Presbyterian minister and the Vice Principal at the Bordentown School.

However, exceeding the accomplishments of James Francis Gregory are the accomplishments of Frederick Drew Gregory's great grandfather James Monroe Gregory 


the Howard University Dean who was one of the leading Civil Rights activists during the 1880s.  And then there is Frederick Drew Gregory's grand uncle, Thomas Montgomery Gregory


the Howard University drama professor who was instrumental in the National Negro Theater Movement. 

And as a side bit of history is the affiliated history of Frederick Drew Gregory's cousin, the actress and comedian Aisha Tyler


whose own colorful genealogy was profiled in an episode of "Who Do You Think You Are?"


and included an unexpected addition


to the Gregory family history.

The Gregorys ... an amazing American story ... an amazing American family.

Peace,

Everett "Skip" Jenkins
Class of 1975
Fairfield, California
September 13, 2024

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