Sergeant Major Lewis Henry Douglass; son of Frederick. Why rely on Gutenberg press? Get away from those old books you found on Hellshire beach, Jamaica in 1801 from that ship wreck. Stop insisting you have a right to be an ignorant aboriginal; White or Black.
Lewis Henry Douglass
Lewis Henry Douglass | |
---|---|
Born | October 9, 1840 New Bedford, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Died | September 19, 1908 (aged 67) Washington D.C., U.S. |
Buried | |
Allegiance | United States |
Service/ | United States Army (Union Army) |
Years of service | 1863-1864 |
Rank | Sergeant Major |
Battles/wars | American Civil War |
Lewis Henry Douglass (October 9, 1840 – September 19, 1908) was the oldest son of Frederick Douglass and his first wife Anna Murray Douglass. He was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Douglass was well educated and as a boy apprenticed, in Rochester, New York, as a typesetter for his father's newspapers The North Star and Douglass' Weekly.
He joined the Union Army on March 25, 1863, only two months after the Emancipation Proclamation allowed African Americans to see combat in the Union Army.[1] He fought for one of the first official African American units in the United States during the Civil War, the famed 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment. Shortly after joining the army, Douglass attained the rank of Sergeant Major, the highest rank a black man could reach. He took part in the Battle of Grimball's Landing (second James Island battle), the Second Battle of Fort Wagner, and the Battle of Olustee.[1][2] At the Second Battle of Fort Wagner, half of his regiment was killed, but this battle turned the public's attention toward the sacrifices made by African Americans in the war.[3] Douglass addressed the bravery of the African American troops in a letter to his future wife Helen Amelia Loguen:
Douglass was also wounded in the Second Battle of Fort Wagner and became ill, forcing him to be medically discharged from the army in 1864.[5] After the Civil War, he worked as a teacher for the Freedman's Bureau.[5] In 1866, Lewis and his brother, Frederick Douglass, Jr. went to Denver where they were hosted by Henry O. Wagoner, a friend of their father. Wagoner taught the brothers typography[6] and along with William J. Hardin, Lewis taught reading, writing, and other subjects to adult blacks in Wagoner's home.[7] Douglass married Helen Amelia Loguen in 1869 and moved to Washington D.C. where he became the first typesetter employed by the Government Printing Office.[1] Douglass's employment by the Government Printing Office as typesetter did not last long because he was unable to join the typesetters' union due to racial intimidation.
Like his father, Lewis Henry Douglass was a "valuable citizen" to Washington D.C. through his involvement with the New National Era and other political impact.[8] He helped establish and was the senior editor of the New National Era (1870-1874) with his father, a "well conducted" newspaper aimed at addressing the issues of the black community in D.C.[5][8] He had a political impact when appointed to the legislative council of the District of Columbia by Ulysses S. Grant where he pushed for racial equality by creating a bill like one that required restaurants to post their prices so they could not overcharge blacks.[5] During the period of U.S. expansion, Douglass was an outspoken critic of the McKinley administration for its involvement in the Philippines and its lack of commitment to solve domestic issues of racial violence towards African Americans.[9]
Douglass had a stroke in 1904 that greatly impacted his health and died four years later, at the age of 67.
References[edit]
- ^ ab c "Lewis Henry Douglass - Biographies - The Civil War in America | Exhibitions - Library of Congress". loc.gov. 2012-11-12. Retrieved 2016-05-12.
- ^ Historic African American Families, http://www.fineancestry.com/lewis-henry-douglass.html, retrieved on Jan. 26, 2013
- ^ ""I Hope to Fall With My Face to the Foe": Lewis Douglass Describes the Battle of Fort Wagner, 1863". historymatters.gmu.edu. Retrieved 2016-05-12.
- ^ Woodson, Carter (1926). The Mind of the Negro.
- ^ ab c d "Sergeant Major Lewis Douglass". www.nga.gov. Archived from the original on 2016-05-02. Retrieved 2016-05-12.
- ^ Simmons, William J., and Henry McNeal Turner. Men of Mark: Eminent, Progressive and Rising. GM Rewell & Company, 1887. p679-684
- ^ Junger, Richard, "Thinking Men and Women who Desire to Improve our Condition": Henry O. Wagoner, Civil Rights, and Black Economic Opportunity in Frontier Chicago and Denver, 1846-1887., in Alexander, William H., Cassandra L. Newby-Alexander, and Charles H. Ford, eds. Voices from within the Veil: African Americans and the Experience of Democracy. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2009. p160
- ^ ab The Rising Son: Or, The Antecedents and Advancement of the Colored Race. A. G. Brown. 1874-01-01.
- ^ "Lewis H. Douglass on Black Opposition to McKinley | November 17, 1899". www.historyisaweapon.com. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
- ^ "Lewis H. Douglass on Black Opposition to McKinley | November 17, 1899". www.historyisaweapon.com. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
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