House of Representatives – 1860s and 1870s
John Willis Menard (1838-1893)
John Willis Menard, abolitionist, author, journalist, and politician, was born in 1838 in Kaskaskia, Illinois, to French Creole parents. He...
Robert Brown Elliott (1842-1884)
Robert Brown Elliott, Reconstruction-era Congressman, was born in 1842 in Liverpool, England. He attended High Holborn Academy in London, England...
Jeremiah Haralson (1846-1916)
Jeremiah Haralson was born near Columbus, Georgia on April 1, 1846. The slave of Georgia planter John Haralson, he was...
Joseph Hayne Rainey (1832-1887)
In 1870 Republican Joseph Hayne Rainey became the first African American to be elected to the United States House of...
James Thomas Rapier (1837-1883)
James Thomas Rapier was a Republican representative from the state of Alabama elected to the 43rd United States Congress. Rapier...
John Roy Lynch (1847-1939)
John Roy Lynch, congressman, soldier, and author was born in Concordia Parish, Louisiana on September 10, 1847 to Patrick Lynch,...
Jefferson Franklin Long (1836-1907)
Jefferson Franklin Long, a Republican who represented Georgia in the 41st Congress, was the first black member to speak on...
Charles Edmund Nash (1844-1913)
Republican Charles Edmund Nash served in the 44th Congress as Louisiana’s only black representative. Nash was born in Opelousas, St....
Robert Carlos DeLarge (1842-1874)
Robert Carlos DeLarge was born a slave in Aiken, South Carolina on March 15, 1842. Rare for that period, DeLarge...
