Dr. Henry Allen Boyd

“Because the National Baptist Publishing Board is operation for the sole purpose of giving service to the race and denomination, every phase of religious life has been considered. The interest of the institution is naturally centered on the things pertaining to religion and spirituality, and that interest is deep and abiding. Service is the keynote or the institution.”
— Henry Allen Boyd

Dr. Henry Allen Boyd served alongside Dr. Richard Henry Boyd as assistant secretary of NBPB and the National Baptist Congress, as well as editor of the Union Review and the Nashville Globe newspapers, among many other ventures. Upon Dr. R. H. Boyd’s death in 1922, Henry Allen Boyd became the leader of NBPB, National Baptist Congress, and Citizens Bank. He served on many boards, including Meharry Medical College and Fisk University, as well as played a crucial role in the founding of Tennessee A & I State College, now known as Tennessee State University.

Dr. Henry Allen Boyd restructured the National Baptist Congress format, and curriculum was developed to meet the critical social and religious needs of the period. The Congress developed profoundly under his leadership and attained new

growth during each year of the Great Depression. Dr. H. A. Boyd also expanded the product offerings of the NBPB to include an extensive array of products, such as certificates, songbooks, record books, and educational courses.

By 1934, NBPB served over 20,000 churches and Sunday schools across the country and the world. Citizens continued to grow as well, reaching $1 million in capital assets by 1944. Boyd continued to serve as a denominational leader, speaker, and advocated for entrepreneurial advances. His charisma and hospitality were the key to his success and left a lasting impact for all to witness. Under his leadership, the institutions survived the depression, world wars, conflict, opposition, growth, and competition.