In 1870, the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified, granting Black men the right to vote. That same year, the state legislature elected Hiram Revels as the first Black US senator. In Mississippi, Black voters elected Black candidates to positions at every level from local sheriffs to national seats. However, Whites, a minority of the population in the state, still held the majority of local and state political offices.
Pictured: A black and white photograph of Hiram Revels. He is seated facing right, at three-quarters profile looking past the camera. The chair he is seated in had a cushioned arm rest with filigree engraving. To his left is a table with light colored tablecloth. Two books, one with a dark cover and one with a light cover are on the tabletop. A dark curtain drapes over them. The background is light grey. The original photo this print was made from appears to have been written on in ink and has small white spots framing Revels.
Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-DIG-cwpbh-00554
