Entrepreneur, Politician, Educator. "Gooseneck Bill" McDonald, as he was called by the press, received acclaim as an African American businessman during the late 19th century. Born to formerly enslaved parents, he rose to acclaim as one of the first Black millionaires in Texas. As a teenager, he worked for rancher and lawyer Captain Z. T. Adams, who took an interest in him and taught him about business and law. After graduating from high school in 1884, with the encouragement of Adams, McDonald attended Roger Williams University in Nashville, Tennessee. He began fighting for public school systems and promoting education among students after returning to Texas as principal of a segregated black school in Forney, Texas. Shortly after that, he became involved in the Republican political party, becoming part of the Black and Tan faction. In 1892, he was elected to the Republican Party of Texas's state executive committee, as interim chairman in 1896, and permanent state chairman in 1898. He was nicknamed "Gooseneck Bill" while working there. In 1899, he was elected as the African-American Texas Masons' Right Worshipful Grand Secretary, a position that gave the organization operational control. He served as Grand Secretary of the state's black Masons for 50 years. In 1906, he founded Fort Worth's first African American-owned bank as an enterprise of the state Masons and the bank survived the Great Depression. He built the city's first black hotel in the late 1920s, which he named "The Jim" after his second wife, Jimmie Strickland. In 2002, a State of Texas Historical marker was erected in his hometown to honor him, with the inscription, "Throughout his life, McDonald was a leader in the struggle for social justice, advocating persistence and civic and moral responsibility as the steps to equality."
Entrepreneur, Politician, Educator. "Gooseneck Bill" McDonald, as he was called by the press, received acclaim as an African American businessman during the late 19th century. Born to formerly enslaved parents, he rose to acclaim as one of the first Black millionaires in Texas. As a teenager, he worked for rancher and lawyer Captain Z. T. Adams, who took an interest in him and taught him about business and law. After graduating from high school in 1884, with the encouragement of Adams, McDonald attended Roger Williams University in Nashville, Tennessee. He began fighting for public school systems and promoting education among students after returning to Texas as principal of a segregated black school in Forney, Texas. Shortly after that, he became involved in the Republican political party, becoming part of the Black and Tan faction. In 1892, he was elected to the Republican Party of Texas's state executive committee, as interim chairman in 1896, and permanent state chairman in 1898. He was nicknamed "Gooseneck Bill" while working there. In 1899, he was elected as the African-American Texas Masons' Right Worshipful Grand Secretary, a position that gave the organization operational control. He served as Grand Secretary of the state's black Masons for 50 years. In 1906, he founded Fort Worth's first African American-owned bank as an enterprise of the state Masons and the bank survived the Great Depression. He built the city's first black hotel in the late 1920s, which he named "The Jim" after his second wife, Jimmie Strickland. In 2002, a State of Texas Historical marker was erected in his hometown to honor him, with the inscription, "Throughout his life, McDonald was a leader in the struggle for social justice, advocating persistence and civic and moral responsibility as the steps to equality."
Bio by: Debbie Gibbons
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