I stopped at this marker on the stretch between Wentworth and Reidsville and it's one of those signs that quietly carries a much bigger story than you expect from a roadside pull-off. The marker has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Glenn T. Settle. 1894-1967. Founder of Wings Over Jordan Choir and Negro Hour radio show, 1937. He promoted traditional spiritual music & racial harmony. Born 2 mi. SW." Glenn T. Settle was born in a log cabin on Nubbin Ridge, a sharecropper's son whose life would arc all the way to national radio and early civil rights influence. The marker does a good job grounding him in Rockingham County's landscape and in the legacy of his grandfather Tom, who had been enslaved by the local Settle family, which gives the whole narrative a sense of rootedness that follows him even after the family left for Pennsylvania in 1902. What stands out is how this local boy became the force behind the Wings Over Jordan Choir, a group that not only brought Black spirituals to a national CBS audience in the 1930s but also refused to perform for segregated crowds, decades before the civil rights movement reached its peak. The marker captures that blend of artistry, ministry, and quiet activism. It leaves you with the sense that this rural ridge produced someone whose voice carried far beyond Rockingham County. [Review 652 of 2026 - 4740 in North Carolina - 25833 overall] read more

Glenn T Settle Historical Marker - Glenn T. Settle Historical Marker, Reidsville - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Reidsville, North Carolina

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