William Tolbert
| William R. Tolbert Jr. | |
|---|---|
 |
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| 20th President of Liberia | |
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In office 23 July 1971 – 12 April 1980 |
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| Vice President | vacant (1971-1972) James Edward Greene (1972-1977) Bennie Dee Warner (1977-1980) |
| Preceded by | William Tubman |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Doe |
| 23rd Vice President of Liberia | |
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In office 1 January 1952 – 23 July 1971 |
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| President | William Tubman |
| Preceded by | Clarence Simpson |
| Succeeded by | James Edward Greene |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
May 13, 1913 Bensonville, Liberia |
| Died | April 12, 1980 (aged 66) Monrovia, Liberia |
| Political party | True Whig |
| Spouse(s) | Victoria A. David |
| Children | 8 |
| Religion | Baptist |
William Richard Tolbert Jr. (May 13, 1913 – April 12, 1980) was the 20th President of Liberia from 1971 until 1980, when he was killed in a coup d'état led by Samuel Doe.
Trained as a civil servant, he entered the country's House of Representatives in 1943 for the True Whig Party, then the only established party in the country. He was elected Vice president to William Tubman in 1952 and served in that position until he became President following Tubman's death in 1971.
Tolbert was born in Bensonville, Liberia. An Americo-Liberian, he was the grandson of a former American slave from South Carolina who emigrated to Liberia in the Liberian exodus of 1878. The Tolbert clan was one of the largest Americo-Liberian families in Liberia.
He attended Bensonville Elementary School, Crummell Hall Episcopalian High School, and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Liberia in 1934. He married Victoria A. Hoff, with whom he had eight children.
Tolbert was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1943, and served until being elected vice president. A Baptist minister, in 1965 he became the first African to serve as president of the Baptist World Alliance, and was also a member of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity. He became Grand Master of the Masonic Order of Liberia.
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