Elbert T. Hudson was a business Icon within the Los Angeles Black Community. During the war, he served as one of the illustrious Tuskegee Airmen and like his father H. Claude Hudson founder of Broadway Federal Bank, he was an attorney who had also acquired a banking credential in 1964. When called upon in 1972, he was ready to take over the family business. He automatically moved into the position of president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the bank. In addition to banking, Elbert T. was also actively involved in the community. He was a member of the board of directors of the Brotherhood Crusade and was instrumental in making it the premier charitable organization in the Black community during that period. And like his father, he was active in the NAACP.
During Elbert T.’s tenure at the helm, “Broadway” opened a third branch in Inglewood settling at a one story building in the heart of the city’s downtown. He continued to fulfill the bank’s mission and to provide training for minorities entering the financial industry. In 1992, tragedy struck around the time of his retirement. During the 1992 civil unrest, fire destroyed the bank’s headquarters. However, it was only a temporary setback. Still wedded to the community, the bank established a temporary facility across from its destroyed building and continued its operation until a new facility was built years later not too far from the burnt site.
