Belford Hendricks - Early Life and Education

Early Life and Education

Hendricks was born in Evansville, Indiana, in May.11,1909 to Frank Hendricks, a lifelong learner with an eighth-grade education, and Melissa Belle (Logan) Hendricks, a graduate of Evansville's Frederick Douglass High School. He also had two siblings, Paul Lawrence and Dorothy Medesta. His love affair with music began when his father brought home a piano, quickly learning how to play additional instruments. In high school, he participated in band.

In 1924, Hendricks was graduated from the town's then-segregated Douglass High School, later rebuilt and renamed Lincoln High School. After taking several years off, working at local establishments, he enrolled at the Indiana State Teachers' College, now known as Indiana State University, in Terre Haute. Often diverted from his education for semesters at a time by a need to earn money and a desire to practice his musical craft, Hendricks' decade-long road to graduation was long. As well as taking jobs in local restaurants and hotels, Hendricks was able to play piano with bands in the area. In 1935, he joined the elite one percent of Black Americans with a college degree, having majored in science and music.