Lewis Thomas Christmas | |
---|---|
North Carolina House of Representatives | |
In office 1879–1880 | |
Personal details | |
Born | November 5, 1855 Warren County, North Carolina |
Died | June 27, 1928 72) Raleigh, North Carolina | (aged
Political party | Republican |
Lewis Thomas Christmas (November 5, 1855 - June 27, 1928) [1] was a reverend, teacher, school principal and state legislator in North Carolina. He represented Warren County, North Carolina, in the North Carolina House of Representatives from 1879 to 1880. [2] [3]
Christmas was born November 5, 1855, in Warren County. [4]
He graduated from the Theological Department of Shaw University in 1884, the same department he would later teach at. [5]
Christmas was elected to represent Warren County, North Carolina, in the North Carolina House of Representatives in August 1878. [6] He served the county with fellow African-American Republican Hawkins Wesley Carter. [6] In the 1879 session he served on the Counties, Cities, Towns and Townships and the Deaf and Dumb and the Blind Asylum committees and introduced a bill to provide compensation for people who had been wrongfully imprisoned. [7]
He served as principal of the Wilmington Training School. [8]
He was a Baptist [1] and was a Reverend working as the pastor of the Central Baptist Church in Wilmington, North Carolina. [9] He also served as State Missionary for the Negro State Baptist convention for many years. [4] In 1920 he was awarded a Doctor of Divinity degree from the Florida Baptist College. [5]
He authored a publication titled An Evil Router in 1900 which was a missionary pamphlet intended to "medicate moral derelicts". [10]
He died June 27, 1928, at home in Raleigh, North Carolina, and was survived by his wife and daughter as well as seven siblings. [4]
More than 1,500 African American officeholders served during the Reconstruction era (1865–1877) and in the years after Reconstruction before white supremacy, disenfranchisement, and the Democratic Party fully reasserted control in Southern states. Historian Canter Brown Jr. noted that in some states, such as Florida, the highest number of African Americans were elected or appointed to offices after the end of Reconstruction in 1877. The following is a partial list of notable African American officeholders from the end of the Civil War until before 1900. Dates listed are the year that a term states or the range of years served if multiple terms.
James Hunter Young was an American soldier and politician from North Carolina. He was a colonel in the Third North Carolina Regiment during the Spanish–American War and served in the North Carolina House of Representatives.
Marshall Lorenzo Shepard, Sr. was an American Christian clergyman and politician. Affiliated with the Democratic Party, his political career was focused in the city of Philadelphia.
Sancho Saunders was a member of South Carolina's House of Representatives during the Reconstruction era. He represented Chester County, South Carolina. He was documented as a literate Baptist minister who was a slave before the American Civil War. He was African American. His photograph was included in a montage of Radical Republican South Carolina legislators.
Edward I. Alexander Sr. (1850-1911) was a grocer, state legislator, city councilman, and postmaster in Florida. He represented Madison County, Florida in the Florida House of Representatives in 1877, 1879, and 1885. He sought to represent Madison County, Florida in the Florida House of Representatives in 1885.
John Newell was a state legislator in North Carolina. He represented Bladen County, North Carolina. He served in the North Carolina House of Representatives from 1874 to 1875 and from 1879 to 1884.
Elijah Baldwin was a state legislator during the Reconstruction era in Alabama. He represented Wilcox County, Alabama in the Alabama House of Representatives. He also served as a constable in Wilcox County.
Hawkins Wesley Carter (1842–1927) was a farmer and state legislator in North Carolina. He lived in Warrenton, North Carolina and was African American.
John E. Hussey was a grocer, boardinghouse owner, and state legislator in North Carolina. He was African-American and represented Craven County in the North Carolina House of Representatives from 1885 to 1889.
Alexander B. Hicks Jr. was a state legislator in North Carolina. He represented Washington County in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1881.
Isaac Alston was a reverend and state legislator in North Carolina. He represented Warren County, North Carolina in the North Carolina Senate in 1870 and 1891. He lived in Warrenton, North Carolina. He was the only African American elected to the North Carolina Senate in 1890. Three African Americans were elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives that year.
Wiley Baker was a state legislator in North Carolina. He represented Northampton County in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1883.
Clinton Wesley Battle was a state legislator and public official in North Carolina during and after the Reconstruction era. He represented Edgecombe County in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1879 and 1881.
John S. W. Eagles was a state legislator in North Carolina. He served in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1869 ti 1870. He represented New Hanover County and was African American. He lived in Wilmington.
Alfred Lloyd was a public official and state legislator in North Carolina. He represented New Hanover County in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1872 and 1874. He represented Pender County in the North Carolina House in 1876.
Hanson Truman Hughes was an American politician and state legislator in North Carolina. He represented Granville County, North Carolina in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1876. He was one of five African Americans serving in the North Carolina Senate in 1876 to 1877. He also worked as a barber.
Isham Sweat was a state legislator in North Carolina. He served in the North Carolina House of Representatives representing Cumberland County.
Tally Ho Township is in Granville County, North Carolina. It is near Stem, North Carolina. There is a Tall Ho Road and a Tally Ho Missionary Baptist Church and cemetery.
William H. Moore was a state legislator in North Carolina. He served in the North Carolina House of Representatives during the Reconstruction era. He represented New Hanover County and served with other African Americans in the state legislature. His post office was in Wilmington, North Carolina. He served with Henry Brewington and Alfred Lloyd who also represented New Hanover in the 1874-1875 session. All three were African Americans.