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Fairfax Underground
Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Black History Month day 6 of 28
Posted by:
bhm
()
Date: February 27, 2021 03:31PM
Hiram R. Revels is the first African American to serve in the United States Senate.
Who Was Hiram R. Revels?
Hiram R. Revels was a minister who, in 1870, became the first African American United States senator, representing the state of Mississippi. He served for a year before leaving to become the president of a historically Black college. Revels died on January 16, 1901, in Aberdeen, Mississippi.
Early Life
Hiram Rhodes Revels was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on September 27, 1827. Despite being born in the South in a time of widespread slavery, Revels was a member of a free family. He and his brother both apprenticed as barbers. Revels' brother subsequently owned his own barbershop.
Upon his brother's death, Revels inherited and ran the shop before leaving North Carolina to study at seminaries in Indiana and Ohio. In 1845, he was ordained as a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, working as an itinerant preacher.
Political Career
Revels participated in the Civil War, organizing two Black regiments for the Union Army. He also fought for the Union at the Battle of Vicksburg. After the war, he settled in Natchez, Mississippi, with his wife and daughters, and continued his career in the clergy. He quickly grew to be a respected member of the community, known for his keen intelligence and oratorical skills. Although he had no previous government experience, Revels garnered enough community support to win election to the position of alderman in 1868, during the first phase of Reconstruction. He then served briefly in the Mississippi State Senate.
Who Was Hiram R. Revels?
Hiram R. Revels was a minister who, in 1870, became the first African American United States senator, representing the state of Mississippi. He served for a year before leaving to become the president of a historically Black college. Revels died on January 16, 1901, in Aberdeen, Mississippi.
Early Life
Hiram Rhodes Revels was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on September 27, 1827. Despite being born in the South in a time of widespread slavery, Revels was a member of a free family. He and his brother both apprenticed as barbers. Revels' brother subsequently owned his own barbershop.
Upon his brother's death, Revels inherited and ran the shop before leaving North Carolina to study at seminaries in Indiana and Ohio. In 1845, he was ordained as a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, working as an itinerant preacher.
Political Career
Revels participated in the Civil War, organizing two Black regiments for the Union Army. He also fought for the Union at the Battle of Vicksburg. After the war, he settled in Natchez, Mississippi, with his wife and daughters, and continued his career in the clergy. He quickly grew to be a respected member of the community, known for his keen intelligence and oratorical skills. Although he had no previous government experience, Revels garnered enough community support to win election to the position of alderman in 1868, during the first phase of Reconstruction. He then served briefly in the Mississippi State Senate.