Blanch K. Bruce
This individual was born to a woman who was enslaved, and a white planter who worked hard and became the second black man to serve in the Senate. He was a first-generation black legislator from the Civil War Era.
Being Educated for The Future
Bruce was a slave who worked as a house servant and had certain privileges, as per the slave standards. He served on various plantations in Virginia, Mississippi, and Missouri. Bruce was fortunate enough to be schooled by a private tutor, who was his half-brother from his father's side, named William. He was allowed to play with his brother on the plantation, and it is said that his father arranged for Bruce to do an apprenticeship so that he could learn a skill.
Civil War
During the Civil War, Bruce was not free. His father, Perkinson, took the family's plantation and relocated to Missouri. However, the violence in the area persisted, prompting Bruce to flee to Kansas. According to a newspaper interview in 1886, Bruce was able to gain his freedom in Kansas.
College and Work
Two years later, he went to college in Oberlin, Ohio. However, he ran out of money and came to Mississippi where he started working as a porter on the Mississippi River. He managed his finances well, and in 1864, he opened a school for black children.
Rich Plantation Owner
After the Civil War, during the Reconstruction of the United States, Bruce purchased a plantation in the Mississippi Delta region. He became one of the wealthiest landowners, owning several thousands of acres. Bruce quickly became a successful planter and started getting involved in politics. He attended Republican meetings where he stood out for his excellent budgeting skills and innovative ideas.
Politics
Before being elected to the Senate, Bruce held various positions. He was known for his budget management skills, writing abilities, and commitment to fairness and justice for all men.
Tallahatchie County registrar of voters and tax assessor
Sherriff of Bolivar County
Tax Collector
Superintendent of Education
Editor of Newspaper
Seargent of Arms—Mississippi State Senate
In 1874, Bruce was elected to the Mississippi Senate. He was the second black man in history to be in the Senate and 1st to serve his six-year term.
Not all senators supported Bruce, and the senior senator didn't mentor him. However, that didn't hinder Bruce from performing his job.
Civil Rights for All Men
Most of the Senate considered him radical because of his Civil Rights beliefs. He spent most of his term defending black Civil War Veterans, segregation, Chinese immigrants who built the railroads, and the rights of the Native Americans. He was the first to reside in the 1879 Debate on Chinese Exclusion over Senate Session.
Marriage
June 24, 1878, Bruce married fair-skinned Socialite Josephine Beall Wilson (1853-1923), and they had one child, Rosco Conkling Bruce, named after his mentor Rosco Conkling of NY Senate.
End of Reconstruction
In 1878, the end of Federal Reconstruction policies marked the end of black mobility and limited freedoms. I've always wondered about the events that occurred between then and the sixties, as policy changes cause laws to change. You should not be able to take freedom back away from people after giving it to them.
End of White House
Bruce's visits to Mississippi became limited due to the violence that erupted in the area. Racism became prevalent, which restricted Southern black people from voting. Southern white people wanted to distance themselves from the Republican party takeover. Due to his elite status, Bruce did not run for office again, which created a division between him and his poorer fellow members. He decided to stay and fight for their rights on an equal playing field.
The Bruces stayed in Washington, and here are the appointments they had while there.
Register of the Treasury
Assistant Commissioner General of the U.S. for The World’s Fair of New Orleans in 1884.
D.C Recorder of Deeds
2nd time—Register of Treasury
Josephine Bruce and Mary Church Terrell founded the Colored Women's League, which fought for the rights of underprivileged African Americans in areas such as housing and finance and helped establish the Civil Rights Act.
Death of a Great Man
Blanche K. Bruce fell ill due to kidney failure on March 17, 1898, from complications of diabetes.
He was a great man who believed that all men deserved equal rights. He gave up his status in Washington to be on an equal level with his fellow humans and fight for their rights.
History.com Wikipedia.com nps.com
There are some beautiful stories out there that make up our history and not just the ones in our schoolbooks.
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