U.S. Congressman. Born the son of an Irish merchant and a black West Indian mother, he was raised in the West Indies. Returning to America in the 1850s, he studied law in North Carolina and at Howard University, Washington, D.C., he served as clerk in the constitutional convention of North Carolina in 1868 and also served in the North Carolina State House of Representatives, (1868-69). He was chairman of the board of commissioners for Halifax County (1872-76), was admitted to the bar in 1873 and practiced law in New Bern, North Carolina. In 1883, he was elected the second African American from North Carolina as a Republican to the Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses, serving until 1887. An unsuccessful candidate for reelection, he resumed the practice of law until his death.
U.S. Congressman. Born the son of an Irish merchant and a black West Indian mother, he was raised in the West Indies. Returning to America in the 1850s, he studied law in North Carolina and at Howard University, Washington, D.C., he served as clerk in the constitutional convention of North Carolina in 1868 and also served in the North Carolina State House of Representatives, (1868-69). He was chairman of the board of commissioners for Halifax County (1872-76), was admitted to the bar in 1873 and practiced law in New Bern, North Carolina. In 1883, he was elected the second African American from North Carolina as a Republican to the Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses, serving until 1887. An unsuccessful candidate for reelection, he resumed the practice of law until his death.
Bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith
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