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Draft:Thomas Yenser

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  • Comment: Please do not remove past AfC decline templates. These are left for future reviewers so that they can review your draft and check that any prior concerns have been addressed. Removing these templates can make it more difficult for your draft to be accepted. Thank you. —ClaudineChionh (she/her · talk · email) 00:24, 18 July 2026 (UTC)
Thomas Yenser
Born(1866-02-16)February 16, 1866
Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedSeptember 10, 1949(1949-09-10) (aged 83)
Kings County, New York, U.S.
Known forEditor and publisher of Who's Who in Colored America (editions 3–6)

Thomas Yenser (February 16, 1866 – September 10, 1949) was an American publisher and editor who compiled the biographical directory series Who's Who in Colored America from 1930 until his death in 1949.[1]

Career

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Early printing and business career

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Yenser began his career as a printer in Pennsylvania before moving to New York City in the early 1900s to work in typography for metropolitan newspapers including the New-York Tribune, City Record, and Evening Telegram.[2] He left the newspaper industry to work as a railroad advertising agent and as an executive for automotive firms, including the American Motor Truck and Tractor Company.[2][3] On September 27, 1921, Yenser co-founded the $1 million American Motor Truck Finance Corporation based in Newark, New Jersey.[3]

Who's Who in Colored America

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Yenser took over the Who's Who in Colored America series from founder Joseph J. Boris in 1930 and managed operations from 2317 Newkirk Avenue in Brooklyn, New York.[2][4] He began work on the series’ fifth edition by 1938 to update existing profiles and compile biographical sketches.[5][6]

To compile biographical data, Yenser and his son traveled more than 30,000 miles across the United States.[7] The directory documented civic, professional, and religious achievements of notable African Americans.[8][9] By 1942, the publication had grown into a 700-page volume containing over 3,500 biographical sketches.[10] Yenser expanded the directory's coverage during World War II to document African Americans serving in the United States Armed Forces.[11]

Yenser’s editorial work and regional travel were covered by contemporary newspapers, such as Pittsburgh Press and the Atlanta Daily World.[12][13] By the 1940s, syndicated columns cited the volumes as a reference source for the African-American community.[14] [15]

Death and legacy

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Yenser died in New York on September 10, 1949, at the age of 83, while compiling the seventh edition of the directory. [1]

The publication rights to the series were later acquired by publisher Christian E. Burckel, who continued the directory using Yenser's compiled archives.[16] Volumes published during Yenser’s tenure are maintained at the Library of Congress and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, and continue to be used in historic research.[17][18][19]

Selected publications

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  • Who's Who in Colored America: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Persons of African Descent in America. Brooklyn, New York: Thomas Yenser (Editor and publisher; managed editions 3–6, 1930–1944).

References

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  1. ^ a b Obituaries:
    • "Thomas Nenser (sic) [Obituary]", The New York Times, September 15, 1949, p. 27. TimesMachine.
    • Bethea, David. "Editor Of Negro 'Who's Who In America' Buried", The New York Age, October 15, 1949, p. 8. Library of Congress.
    • "Final Rites Held For Thomas Yenser", The Detroit Tribune, October 1, 1949, p. 4. Library of Congress.
    • "Who's Who Writer Buried In New York", The Voice (Lincoln, Nebraska), October 6, 1949, p. 1. Library of Congress.
    • "Yenser... Dies", The Jackson Advocate, October 6, 1949, p. 1. Library of Congress.
    • "Final Rites for Who's Who Publisher", The Miami Times (Miami, Florida), October 1, 1949, p. 7. Library of Congress
  2. ^ a b c "Thomas Nenser (sic) [Obituary]". ‘’The New York Times’’. September 15, 1949. p. 27. TimesMachine. (Note: typo "Nenser" in original headline).
  3. ^ a b "Poor's Manual of Railroads". Poor's Publishing Company. 1922. via Internet Archive.
  4. ^ "New "Who's Who" Ready in September". Atlanta Daily World. July 12, 1937. p. 2. Retrieved 2026-07-27 – via Digital Library of Georgia / Georgia Historic Newspapers.
  5. ^ "Who's Who Editor Urges Cooperation". The Dayton Forum. September 30, 1938. p. 4 – via Chronicling America.
  6. ^ "Who's Who Editor Compiles Entries". The Omaha Guide. June 10, 1939. p. 1. Retrieved 2026-07-27 – via Chronicling America / Library of Congress.
  7. ^ Press coverage:
    • "Publisher Of Who's Who Seeks Oddities", New Journal and Guide, July 25, 1936, p. 20 – via Newspapers.com.
    • "Who's Who Data Being Compiled", The Times-News (Hendersonville, NC), August 5, 1936, p. 1. Library of Congress.
    • "Who's Who Editor Compiles Entries", The Northwest Enterprise, August 13, 1937, p. 1. Library of Congress.
  8. ^ "Editor of Who's Who...". The Omaha Guide. December 17, 1938. p. 1 – via Chronicling America / Library of Congress.
  9. ^ "Editor of Who's Who Requests Cooperation". The Gary American. December 16, 1938. p. 11 – via Chronicling America.
  10. ^ Thomas Yenser, ed. (1944). Who's Who in Colored America: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Persons of African Descent in America: 1941-to-1944 (6th ed.). Brooklyn, NY: Thomas Yenser.
  11. ^ Additional press reports on the directory's expanded coverage:
  12. ^ "Who's Who Editor Here". The Pittsburgh Press. December 15, 1935. p. 1 – via Chronicling America.
  13. ^ "Launch War Edition of Who's Who". Atlanta Daily World. March 2, 1943. p. 2 – via Chronicling America.
  14. ^ Brown, W. Douglas. "What's the Answer". The Gazette. November 18, 1944. p. 4 – via Chronicling America.
  15. ^ "Fifth Edition of Who's Who is Under Way". The Gary American. Gary, Indiana. Calvin's Newspaper Service. September 30, 1938. p. 7 – via Library of Congress.
  16. ^ "Who's Who in Colored America Prepared". The Voice. Lincoln, NE. November 16, 1950. p. 2. Retrieved 2026-07-27 – via Chronicling America / Library of Congress.
  17. ^ Thomas Yenser, ed. (1944). Who's Who in Colored America: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Persons of African Descent in America: 1941-to-1944. Brooklyn, NY: Thomas Yenser. Retrieved 2026-07-27 – via Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture / New York Public Library.
  18. ^ Eagles, Brenda M. (1986). "Davenport, William Henry". NCpedia. State Library of North Carolina.
  19. ^ "No story left untold: Archiving the Black experience at Michigan." University of Michigan Giving. via Bentley Historical Library.
[edit]

Category:1866 births Category:1949 deaths Category:American book publishers (people) Category:American editors Category:People from Flatbush, Brooklyn

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