Posted inThis Week in History

This week in history: Oscar James Dunn, Louisiana’s first Black lieutenant governor, dies

On Nov. 22, 1871, Oscar Dunn, Louisiana’s first Black lieutenant governor, died. Dunn was among a number of Black men in the South who had gained power after the Civil War and during the Reconstruction era. Dunn was born into slavery in 1822, though his stepfather purchased his freedom a decade later.  As an adult, […]