Processes for preparing a 4-(secondary or tertiary)aminopyridine are provided. The processes comprise reacting a 4-substituted pyridine base having a leaving group as the 4-substituent, with an activating agent so as to form a corresponding 1,4-substituted pyridine; reacting the 1,4-substituted pyridine with a primary or secondary amine to substitute an amino group at the 4-position, and thereby form a corresponding 1-substituted-4-(secondary or tertiary) aminopyridine, wherein the reacting is conducted in a substitution reaction medium essentially free from strong base; and treating the 1-substituted-4-aminopyridine compound to remove the 1-substituent and thereby form a product medium including the 4-(secondary or tertiary) amino-pyridine.