Sharon Botts Garth Collection on Rev. Henry Botts, Sr.

Sharon Botts Garth is an author and the granddaughter of Rev. Henry Botts, Sr. Garth was born and raised in the Twin Cities and continues to reside in the area. In 2019, Garth published When Destiny Calls: Living Life with Purpose, a biography of Rev. Henry Botts, Sr.

For over 30 years, Henry Botts, Sr. was the pastor of Zion Baptist Church in North Minneapolis. Botts was born near Meadville, Missouri, in 1875. He was the fifth of six children born to Thomas and Matilda Botts, formerly enslaved people who had become sharecroppers.

In his twenties, Botts began his ministry as a travelling preacher in Missouri. He became the pastor of Second Baptist Church in Plattsburg, Missouri, and then a church in Boonville, Missouri. In 1920, Botts was named senior pastor of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. After overseeing extensive building projects at the Lincoln church, Botts was recruited as pastor of Zion Baptist Church in Minneapolis. In 1929, Botts and his wife Ursula Hines Botts moved to Minnesota.

Botts served as pastor of Zion Baptist Church until his retirement in 1959. Botts worked actively with many local community organizations, including the Phyllis Wheatley Settlement House, NAACP, and Urban League. He held leadership positions in the National Baptist Convention. After retirement, Botts continued to serve the community and Zion Baptist Church until his death in 1967 at age 93.