Townes, Clarence L. (Clarence Lee), 1928-

Clarence Lee Townes, Jr., businessman, political activist, and a significant participant in the revitalization of Richmond, Virginia, has spent much of his life working to broaden and increase economic and political opportunities for African-Americans in Virginia.Born in Richmond on January 21, 1928, Townes is the son of Alice Smith and Clarence L. Townes, Sr. and graduated from Armstrong High School in 1944. Townes attended Virginia Union University and received a B.S. degree (Commerce). In 1951, he married Grace Elizabeth Harris of Richmond and the couple had four children. Commissioned in 1952 as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army Infantry, Townes received an honorable discharge in 1953. After the army, Townes was appointed Assistant Manager (Richmond Office) of the Virginia Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company, a company his father had helped found. He later became director of training (1964- 1966).Townes was active in Republican Party politics in the late 1950s. As many African-Americans were turning towards the Democratic Party, he served on the Richmond City Republican Committee (1958-1961) and as a board member of Richmond Forward, a political action group. Also, he served as commissioner (1963-1966) of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority. Townes attended the 1964 Republican Convention as the first Black member of a Virginia delegation in modern times. After the convention, he ran as the Republican candidate for the Richmond-Henrico seat in the Virginia House of Delegates. Although he lost, and would not seek public office in the future, the election race brought national attention to the South and its treatment of African-Americans in the political process. "The great thing that came out of this (election), "Townes wrote at the time, "was to focus the attention of both parties on legitimately seeking the Negro vote (in Virginia)." Townes was Special Assistant to the State Chairman, Republican Party of Virginia in 1965 (1965-1966). He organized and was treasurer of the National Negro Republican Assembly (1965-1966) which ran an eight-man Republican slate against an eight-man Democratic slate. In 1966, Townes became an Assistant to the Chairman of the Republican National Committee (1966-1970) and later, Director of Minorities (1967-1970), working to increase Republican ties with minorities. In 1970, after leaving the RNC, he helped found the Joint Center for Political Affairs, an African-American think-tank associated with Howard University. The Joint Center was created to help newly elected black officials with the business of government. Townes served as Director of Governmental Affairs (1970-1974). In addition, Townes was a board and founding member of the Jefferson Townhouse Corporation of Richmond, Virginia, a black-controlled enterprise that operated a housing complex located in the city. In 1970 he became a member of the Board of Directors of the Consolidated Bank and Trust Co. of Richmond, the oldest Black-controlled bank in the nation. Townes also worked as a consultant on federal programs to Virginia State College and was a consultant to the Virginia Electric and Power company on matters pertaining to equal employment. He was also a consultant for the Manpower Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, evaluating the agency's National Office Equal Opportunity Program. After commuting by bus from Richmond to Washington, D.C. for eight years, Townes returned to Richmond in 1974 to establish a bus company called Metro Coach. After a series of business disappointments, lawsuits, and investigations the company eventually turned into a success. At this time, the early 1980s, Townes chaired Richmond Renaissance, a non-profit, biracial corporation formed to foster economic development in downtown Richmond. Townes served as Richmond Renaissance's deputy director from 1982 until 1991 when he was appointed director.

From the description of Clarence L. Townes, Jr. papers, 1944-1988 (James Branch Cabell Library). WorldCat record id: 150902910

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