Early years of T. J. Sellers
Thomas Jerome (T. J.) Sellers was born in 1911, the son of Thomas and Rachel
L. Sellers at 320 5th S. W. Street in Charlottesville, Virginia.
His father, Thomas worked as a janitor at a local bank in 1910 in Charlottesville.
His mother, Rachel was unemployed in 1910, but, she worked as a domestic
in 1920, a pantry maid at the Gleason Hotel in 1922, and then a domestic
until her death in 1967. Rachel Sellers gave birth to four children,
of which T. J. was the youngest. T. J. Sellers' siblings in order from
the oldest to the youngest were Ines, Maudjeska, and George.
Like his older siblings, T. J. Sellers was educated in Virginia's segregated
public schools. This education, as unequal as it may have been to
that of white Americans, motivated Sellers to use his education as a tool
for the advancement of himself and his race. (link) Though Sellers
was fortunate enough to be educated, his ascension to leadership in Charlottesville's
black community had humble beginnings. When he was eighteen years
old, Sellers worked as a helper, and still lived with his mother at 320
5th S. W. Later on, as a twenty year old, Sellers worked as a shoeshiner
at a local barber shop.
[Back
to 'About the Editor' page] [To
the 'Adult years of T. J. Sellers' page] [To
the 'Philosophy of T. J. Sellers' page]