While serving as a pastor in Montgomery, Barbour called for a gathering in response to efforts by the state to undermine black voting rights.
He was the chief strategist of activism for twenty years and was well respected by blacks and whites within the community for his measured and pragmatic approach.
[2] Martin Luther King Jr. attended Calvary Baptist Church while studying at Crozer Theological Seminary from 1948 to 1951.
[9] King was a frequent guest at the Barbour house for the southern cooking but also the academic debates and challenging ideas.
[11] Barbour died of gastroenteritis following a cerebral hemhorrage at Lankenau Medical Center in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.