George White

George White is a great contributor to Black American history. The efforts of the teacher, lawyer, businessman, and politician will never go undocumented in history books.

White was born in Rosindale, North Carolina in 1852. His background is a mixture of Irish, Negro, and Indian. He would become the last former slave to serve in Congress.

He started his education at age ten, after emanicipation. At 21, he saved his money and went to law school at Howard University. But financing his education would not be easy. He taught school during summer months in his native North Carolina to cover the costs of tuition.

After law school, he became a solicitor and prosecuting attorney, eventually giving up that position to run for the U.S. House of Representatives.

After failing to get the seat on the first try, he ran again and won.

But he decided not to return to Congress for another term, opting to begin a second career as banker and real estate developer in the areas of Washington and Philadelphia.

In his parting speech from Congress, White ask lawmakers for “no special favors, but simply demands that he be given the same chance for existence, for earning a livelihood, for raising himself in the scales of manhood and womanhood that are accorded.