Object Details
- Artist
- Charles Milton Bell, 3 Apr 1848 - 12 May 1893
- Sitter
- John Roy Lynch, 10 Sep 1847 - 2 Nov 1939
- Exhibition Label
- Born near Vidalia, Louisiana
- Among the leading African American statesmen during Reconstruction, John Roy Lynch was born in slavery and later sold with his mother and siblings to an enslaver in Natchez, Mississippi. Liberated when Union forces reached Natchez in 1863, Lynch strove to educate himself and soon developed a passion for parliamentary law and politics. Advocating Republican Party initiatives for the advancement of Black people in the South, Lynch spoke persuasively in support of the new Mississippi state constitution, which extended voting rights to African American men. Elected to the state legislature in 1869, he served as speaker of the house during his second term.
- In 1873, at the age of twenty-six, Lynch became the first African American to represent Mississippi in the U.S. House of Representatives. He helped win passage of the long-contested Civil Rights Act of 1875, ensuring equal treatment regardless of race, which Lynch deemed “an act of simple justice.”
- Nacido cerca de Vidalia, Luisiana
- John Roy Lynch, uno de los principales políticos afroamericanos de la Reconstrucción, nació esclavo y fue vendido con su madre y hermanos a un hacendado de Natchez, Misisipi. Liberado cuando las fuerzas de la Unión llegaron a Natchez en 1863, Lynch se esforzó por educarse y pronto se apasionó por el derecho parlamentario y la política. Abogando por iniciativas del Partido Republicano para el progreso de los afroamericanos en el sur, Lynch defendió la nueva constitución de Misisipi, que extendía el derecho al voto a los hombres negros. Elegido para la legislatura estatal en 1869, presidió la cámara durante su segundo término.
- En 1873, a la edad de 26 años, Lynch fue el primer afroamericano que representó a Misisipi en la Cámara de Representantes de EE.UU. Allí impulsó la Ley de Derechos Civiles de 1875, largamente debatida, que garantizaba el trato igual, sin distinción de raza, lo cual Lynch consideraba “un simple acto de justicia”.
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
- c. 1882
- Object number
- NPG.89.190
- Restrictions & Rights
- CC0
- Type
- Photograph
- Medium
- Albumen silver print
- Dimensions
- Image/Sheet: 14.8 × 10.1 cm (5 13/16 × 4")
- Mount: 16.3 × 10.5 cm (6 7/16 × 4 1/8")
- Mat: 45.7 × 35.6 cm (18 × 14")
- Place
- United States\District of Columbia\Washington
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Location
- Currently not on view
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Interior
- Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Mustache
- Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Goatee
- Photographic format\Cabinet card
- John Roy Lynch: Male
- John Roy Lynch: Law and Crime\Lawyer
- John Roy Lynch: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer
- John Roy Lynch: Business and Finance\Natural resources commerce\Agriculturist\Farmer
- John Roy Lynch: Politics and Government\Government official\US Congressman\Mississippi
- John Roy Lynch: Arts and Culture\Visual Arts\Artist\Photographer
- John Roy Lynch: Politics and Government\Government official\State Legislator\Mississippi
- John Roy Lynch: Business and Finance\Businessperson\Real estate agent
- John Roy Lynch: Law and Crime\Justice of the Peace
- John Roy Lynch: Law and Crime\Enslaved person
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.89.190
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4d274f6d1-1235-4794-82ff-6a168a8cdb87
