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organizational activities aimed at developing the black community in
Washington, economically, politically, culturally and educationally. At a time when there was a very strong debate within the black community between the advantages of industrial versus liberal, political versus economic development, and the strategies of internal black development versus attempts for equality and assimilation into the mainstream of American life, Hilyer did not see the need to restrict the options for black development. His passion lay in organising opportunities for the betterment of Washington, D.C.’s black business population, and he often worked with white citizens, convincing them to help develop the black economic community through employment and business education. Hilyer was one of the founders and the first president of the Union League of the District of Columbia which was organized in 1892 "to advance the moral, material and financial interests of the colored people". The Union League published directories of black businesspeople in 1892, 1894, and 1895 and in 1901 published A historical, Biographical and Statistical Study of Colored Washington which was directed and a coordinated by Hilyer. The document recorded 1000 black-owned business by 1901, an impressive leap from the 120 recorded in 1894. His business interests also led him to attend the
252:(NAACP), Hilyer also lent his efforts to the struggle against racial injustices. He showed his support for other empowerment initiatives, and was present at the first meeting of Booker T. Washington’s National Negro Business League in 1900. He held a position on the Board of Trustees at Howard University and he advocated for liberal and professional education. He was also a supporter of industrial education, participated in Hampton institute conferences, and sent one of his sons, Franklin, to Armstrong, the industrial high school in Washington, D.C. He was also the chairman of the Committee of Business and Labor in D.C.
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the arts, and was a member of the Bethel
Literary and Historical Association as well as the Muso-Lit Club. The establishment of the S. Coleridge-Taylor Choral Society was as a result of Hilyer and his first wife. Mamie Elizabeth had a passion for music and through her dedication the pair even managed to organise concerts on two separate occasions at which the
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155:, and died in January 1925. An avid believer in the potential and development of African Americans, he devoted his life to cultivating black business in D.C. His interests spanned a variety of activities, and although a lawyer by profession, he dabbled in many areas throughout his time in the capitol.
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Alongside his federal employment, Hilyer also dabbled in real estate investment – buying, developing and selling properties. He was also an acclaimed inventor, receiving patents in 1900 for his inventions of a hot-air register and a water evaporator for a hot-air register. He enjoyed literature and
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Because he was a civil servant Hilyer was not able to participate in politics overtly. He was, however, the founder of the
Correspondence Club which was designed to influence public opinion, media representation and public policy as they affected the black community. The membership of this club was
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Hilyer's first job was as a correspondent for the
Northwest Review while he was at Howard University. After his graduation, he took a job as a class II clerk at the Treasury Department and he later on became Secretary Treasurer. Hilyer's most notable impact and significance lie in his innovative
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Hilyer died at his home on
January 13, 1925. Funeral services were held on Jan. 16 in Rankin Memorial Chapel, Howard University, and he was buried in Harmony Cemetery, Washington, D.C. His home is still part of the Howard University campus today and is used for administrative offices.
183:, as a freeman. There, he met and befriended several wealthy white families such as the Gale and Pillsbury families. These families helped him in his education, especially in pursuing higher education. He graduated from the
215:(1863–1916), with whom he had three children: Gale, Franklin and Kathleen. Mamie Elizabeth was a D.C. native whose family had been free for several generations. She was a music enthusiast and a member of the well-known
191:, and was the first African American to graduate from there with a B.A. in 1882. In order to further his education and to fuel his interest in law, Hilyer moved to Washington, D.C., where he attended
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Hilyer, Andrew F. (1899). "Report of the
Committee on Business and Labor. Southern Workman". No. 9. African American Periodicals.
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305:"Men of the Month - A Social Leader. Crisis: A Record of the Darker Races". African American Periodicals. p. 227.
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in the Summer of 1858. When he was still a child, he and his mother became
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and he relocated again after the death of his mother, this time to
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Businessman, lawyer, inventor, activist and real estate investor
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Chocolate City: Race and
Democracy in the Nation's Capitol
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National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People
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Thompson, R.W. (1907). "The Negro
Exhibit at Jamestown".
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223:(1870–1957). She was a graduate of the
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339:Dictionary of American Negro Biography
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