The Rt. Rev. Quintin Primo, Jr., retired Suffragan Bishop of Chicago, died Jan. 14 at his home in Hockessin, Del., of heart disease. He was 84. Bishop Primo was among the founders of the Union of Black Episcopalians, and served as the organization's first president.

A native of Liberty County, Ga., Bishop Primo was a graduate of Lincoln University and Virginia Theological Seminary. Following ordination to the diaconate in 1941 and to the priesthood in 1942, he was curate at St. Agnes' Church, Miami, Fla., 1941-42; priest-in-charge of St. Gabriel's, Rutherfordton, Good Shepherd, Tryon, and St. Andrew's, Green River, N.C., 1942-44; priest-in-charge of St. Stephen's, Winston-Salem, N.C., 1944-45; priest-in-charge of St. Timothy's, Brooklyn, N.Y., 1945-47; priest-in-charge of St. Simon's, Rochester, N.Y., 1947-61, and rector there, 1961-63; priest-in-charge of St. Matthew's, Wilmington, Del., 1963-66, and its rector, 1966-69; and rector of St. Matthew and St. Joseph, Detroit, 1969-72.

He was elected Bishop Suffragan of Chicago in 1972, serving in that ministry until his retirement in 1985. During his retirement, he was an interim bishop in Delaware in 1985 and 1986.

Bishop Primo became well known for his willingness to ordain women in the Diocese of Chicago, when its diocesan bishop, the Rt. Rev. James Montgomery, said he could not do so. He and Bishop Montgomery were co-founders of the Urban Center of St. Barnabas, a community outreach ministry in Chicago, in 1979. A transitional center for homeless women and children, the Primo Women's Center, was named for him.

He was the recipient of doctoral degrees from Virginia, General Theological Seminary, Seabury-Western Theological Seminary and St. Augustine College. He served for many years as a member of the Living Church Foundation.

He is survived by his wife, Winifred, a son, Quintin III, of Chicago, daughters Susan Davis of Atlanta and Cynthia Martin of Wilmington, sisters Margaret Primo of Albany, Ga., and Frances Harvey of New York City, a brother, Joseph, of New York City, and two grandchildren.