Chambers, Lenoir, 1891-1970

Lenoir Chambers (1891-1970) was a newspaper editor and author. He is best known for his work on Stonewall Jackson and winning the Pulitzer Prize for his editorials in 1959. He was the Gilmer Lecturer in 1961. This lecture was established through the will of Louisa Porter Gilmer Minis.

Lenoir Chambers was a native of North Carolina. Chambers worked as a newspaper editor in Norfolk, Va., 1929- 1961, and was the author of "Stonewall Jackson" (1959) and "Salt Water and Printer's Ink" (1967).

Joseph Lenoir Chambers, son of Joseph Lenoir and Grace Singleton Dewey Chambers, was born in Charlotte, N.C., on 26 December 1891. He attended Woodberry Forest, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the Columbia University School of Journalism. After serving in the 52nd Infantry, Sixth Division, American Expeditionary Forces during World War I, he became director of the University of North Carolina News Bureau (1919-1921), then reporter, city editor, and eventually associate editor of the Greensboro Daily News (1921-1929). Chambers moved to Norfolk, Va., to become associate editor of the Virginian-Pilot (1929-1944) and editor of the Norfolk Ledger-Dispatch in 1944.

In 1947, Francis Phillips of William, Morrow, and Co. interested Chambers in writing a biography of Stonewall Jackson. Chambers became editor of the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot in 1950. He published Stonewall Jackson in 1959 and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing in 1960. That same year, he was given an honorary L.L.D. degree from the University of North Carolina. From 1959 to 1962, Chambers served as a member of the Nieman Foundation Selecting Committee; was a juror for the Pulitzer Prize awards; wrote an article for We Dissent (a book edited by Hoke Norris); compiled an article on Virginia for Grolier Encyclopedia ; and appeared at numerous speaking engagements, including the University of North Carolina commencement of 1961. After retiring in 1961, Chambers continued to speak; wrote a history of Norfolk newspapers entitled Salt Water and Printer's Ink (1967); served on an advisory council for the development of the New Market Battlefield (1966-1969); became active in Virginia Historical Society affairs; and played an important role in the development of branch libraries as vice president of the Norfolk Public Library Board.