Warren Barrios Wilson | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1921-01-18)January 18, 1921 Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Died | October 26, 2012(2012-10-26) (aged 91) Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Warren B. Wilson, Barrios (pen name) |
| Education | University of California, Berkeley Hastings College of the Law |
| Occupations | Lawyer, businessman, philanthropist, author |
| Known for | CEO of Thomas Bros. Maps Founder of The Barrios Trust Civil rights advocacy |
| Spouse | Joanne Casey |
| Relatives | Lionel Wilson (brother) |
Warren Barrios Wilson (January 18, 1921 – October 26, 2012) was an American lawyer, businessman, philanthropist, civil rights activist, and author in Oakland, California.[1][2] He served as chief executive officer of Thomas Bros. Maps for over four decades and later founded The Barrios Trust, a non-profit supporting youth education in Oakland.[1][3]
Early life and education
Wilson was born in Oakland, California, on January 18, 1921, to Louise Barrios and Jules Wilson.[1][4] He was raised on 32nd and Chestnut Street in Oakland.[1] He attended University High School before enrolling at the University of California, Berkeley.[1] He earned his J.D. degree from Hastings College of the Law and was admitted to the California State Bar in 1953.[2] He was a member of the State Bar for over 50 years.[1][3]
His family was of Creole heritage, with roots in New Orleans and Pensacola, Florida.[1] He was the younger brother of Lionel Wilson, who became the first African American mayor of Oakland.[1][2] While his brother identified as Black, Warren Wilson identified as Creole, a distinction he explored in his published writings.[1]
Legal career
Wilson practiced law in Oakland for over five decades.[1][3] He was a California State Bar member and maintained his law offices at the Victorian Legal Center (also known as the Mason-Elsey-Wilson House), a historic building in Oakland that he and his wife Joanne Casey renovated.[1][5] On May 18, 2004, the building was designated Oakland Landmark #135.[5]
In 1965, Wilson joined a group of San Francisco attorneys who traveled to Magnolia, Mississippi, to collect testimony for the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party's challenge to the election of several members of Congress.[1] The testimony documented attempts by Black residents of Magnolia to register to vote, activities that drew hostility from white residents, and broader efforts to organize and educate others about voter registration.[1]
Earlier in his career, Wilson established a small non-profit organization called Educal to assist ex-offenders and minorities in obtaining education and stabilizing their lives.[1]
Thomas Bros. Maps
Wilson served as chief executive officer of Thomas Bros. Maps, the Oakland-based street mapping company, for over 40 years.[2][3] Under his leadership, the company became the standard reference for maps and directions throughout California.[1] While CEO, Wilson formed the Thomas Bros. Maps Educational Foundation.[1] The company also ran an "urban geography project" called "Community Treasures," which engaged school and youth groups across California in mapping important locations and features of their local communities.[1] In 1999, Wilson sold Thomas Bros. Maps to Rand McNally.[1][2]
Philanthropy
After the sale of Thomas Bros. Maps, Wilson and his wife established The Barrios Trust, a larger non-profit organization supporting young people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds in their educational pursuits.[1][3] The organization was named in honor of Wilson's mother, Louise Barrios Wilson.[1] The Barrios Trust supported programs including FACES at Children's Hospital Oakland, Northern Light School, and the Oakland Community Pools Project.[1] Wilson wrote a "President's Message" for the organization expressing the belief that "those of us to whom much has been given have a responsibility to give back to others who have not had the same good fortune."[1]
Wilson was also a co-founder of the Oakland Fund, a community-based grantmaking organization.[3]
Writing
Wilson published several works, including Dark, Light, Almost White: Memoir of a Creole Son (2009), a memoir exploring his Creole identity and family history,[1] and Touch Stones in Poetic Verse (2000), a collection of poetry published under the pen name "Barrios."[1][2] Wilson also published The Triad (1986).[2] He described poetry as "threads of inspired thought like the warp and the weft, woven into a meaningful fabric."[1]
Death and legacy
Wilson died on October 26, 2012, at the age of 91.[3] He was the last surviving brother of Lionel Wilson.[1]
Wilson's personal and professional papers, spanning from the mid-20th century through 2002, are held by the Amistad Research Center at Tulane University.[4] The collection includes bound diaries with Wilson's personal reflections on events that shaped his life and career, and documents his family's migration from New Orleans and Pensacola to Oakland.[1][4]
References
- "Warren Barrios Wilson". LocalWiki. Retrieved 2026-06-20.
- "Warren B. Wilson". Contemporary Lawyer Poets. Retrieved 2026-06-20.
- "Warren Barrios Wilson obituary". East Bay Times. 2012-11-03. Retrieved 2026-06-20.
- "Wilson, Warren Barrios, 1921-2012". Amistad Research Center. Retrieved 2026-06-20.
- Center/Law_Offices_of_Warren_B._Wilson "Victorian Legal Center/Law Offices of Warren B. Wilson". LocalWiki. Retrieved 2026-06-20.
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Category:1921 births Category:2012 deaths Category:Lawyers from Oakland, California Category:Businesspeople from Oakland, California Category:Philanthropists from California Category:American civil rights activists Category:Writers from Oakland, California Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni Category:20th-century American lawyers Category:20th-century American businesspeople Category:Activists from Oakland, California Category:21st-century American writers