George Henry White

Congressman George White, enslaved until the age of 10, was the last Black American to serve in Congress until 1928. He represented North Carolina from 1897 to 1901 (55th-56th Congresses), serving on the Agriculture and District of Columbia committees. In 1900, White introduced the first bill to make lynching a federal crime punishable by death. He also called for reducing Congressional representation of states where Black Americans could not vote. During his earlier service in North Carolina’s House and Senate, White was a strong advocate for public education in the South. After leaving Congress, he founded a Black town in New Jersey and established a bank to serve Black entrepreneurs and homebuyers.