Influential Detroit pastor the Rev. Charles Gilchrist Adams dies at age 86

DETROIT (AP) — Influential longtime Detroit pastor the Rev. Charles Gilchrist Adams has died following an illness. He was 86. Adams’ sister told The Detroit News on Thursday that he died Wednesday following a bout with pneumonia. Adams spent a half-century as pastor of Hartford Memorial Baptist Church before retiring in 2019. He had since served as pastor emeritus. Adams used the church’s standing and its resources to spur economic development on the city’s northwest side. Adams was born in Detroit, attended Fisk University in Tennessee and graduated from the University of Michigan and Harvard University. From 1962-1969 he was pastor of Concord Baptist Church in Boston before being appointed pastor at Hartford Memorial.