 In 1913, Gates and his wife Nellie relocated to a neighborhood in Atlanta, Summerhill, a popular location for the city's migrant workers and immigrants.He joined Mount Calvary Baptist Church and, when the preacher resigned to pastor another church in Detroit, Gates became ordained minister of the congregation in 1916.During his 26-year tenure, the Reverend Gates was highly celebrated for a preaching style rooted in black folk evangelicalism, effectively appealing to the church's migrant congregation.