A meeting was held at the home of Rev. James C. Richards at the corner of Park and Hyslop Streets for the purpose of establishing an organization now and hereafter to be known as the Wookstock Industrial Institute. The chairperson of the meeting was J.C. Wilmore with Rev. C. H. McGowan acting as Secretary. At this point, the organzation was established to be comprised of a board of nine trustees, from which the directors were selected.

The following persons were selected to make up the Board of Trustees: - Rev. Jas. C. Wilmore, Rev. John G. Taylor, Rev. Richard Hatchett, Rev. Daniel Eady, Rev. James C. Richards, Rev. C.H. McGowan, Messrs Thomas Marshall, John W. Stevens, William Galloway.

The following Officers were elected:
President - Rev. C. H. McGowan
Vice-Pres. - J.C. Wilmore
Secretary - Rev. J.C. Richards
Treasurer - Rev. Daniel Eady
Directors - Rev. Richard Hatchett, Chairman; Mr. John Stevens, Mr. William Galloway, Mr. Thomas Marshall.

Rev. John G. Taylor was elected to be the collector for the Institute at this meeting. Also Rev. Taylor was allowed travelling expenses and his books were to be audited every 3 months and a corporate seal was to be obtained for the Organization. One should note the number of Ministers on the orginial Board and also that the Board of Trustees were not all from Chatham.

Meetings were held regularly until this group was granted a charter from the Province of Ontario and By-Laws drafted. The first clause was amended at the second meeting, inserting the clause: "whites and Indians" were not to be excluded from the school.

The first regular meeting under the Charter of Incoroportaion, the Woodstock Industrial Institute, Board of Trustees, was held June 20th, 1908. Rev. John G. Taylor presented the Letters of Patent granted by the Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, legalizing the existence and authority of the Woodstock Instustrial Institute.

* By 1912 - Miss Helena Lynn - music
* By 1912 - Mr. Jeff Lucas - blacksmith
* By 1914 - Mrs. Laura Bulter - dressmaking

The Institute mourned the loss of its President, Bishop J.C. Wilmore, at their January 1914 meeting. Rev. Richard Hatchett replaced Rev. Wilmore as President.

In 1917, Miss Lynn's music department was progressing steadily with five students passing the Toronto Conservatory Examination, and Bethune Murray receiving honors.

After the deaths of Rev. Hatchett and Rev. Wilmore, these vancacies on the Trustee Board were filled by John Richardson and Rev, A. Jones of Sarnia.

In 1921, the Board was extremely happy to add a new department, wireless telegraphy, under a skilled and capable Chatham man, Mr. Harold Jackson.

Harold Jackson had a small nook on the second floor of the Woodstock School. When I went up to Miss Lynn's room to take my music lesson, he was often up their working with wires, etc. One summer night when Miss Lynn was presenting her class recital, Rev. J.C. Richards, trustee, was too sick to attend. Harlod then broadcast the entire recital to his home on Park St. E. This could have been the first radio broadcast in Chatham, Ontario.

Source:
Seek The Truth: A Story of Chatham's Black Community
By: Gwen Robinson