January 1869

Howard University School of Law opens in Washington, D.C., becoming the only law school in America actively training Black attorneys. Its graduates go on to argue landmark cases, serve in Congress, and build the legal infrastructure for the later civil rights movement. Among its most celebrated faculty: future Supreme Court advocate John Mercer Langston, who served as its first dean.

Howard University School of Law opens in Washington, D.C., becoming the only law school in America actively training Black attorneys. Graduates argued landmark cases, served in Congress, and built the legal infrastructure for the later civil rights movement. John Mercer Langston served as its first dean.

Sarah Bradford publishes 'Scenes in the Life of Harriet Tubman' to help Tubman raise money. The book begins the historical record of Tubman's service as Union spy, scout, and the only woman to lead an armed military raid in the Civil War — the Combahee River Raid (1863), which freed 700 enslaved people.

John Mercer Langston, who in 1855 had become the first Black American elected to public office (Brownhelm Township, Ohio), was appointed founding dean of Howard University School of Law in 1869. He built the school into the primary training ground for Black lawyers in America, graduated Charlotte Ray among others, and later served as U.S. Minister to Haiti.

John Mercer Langston — the first Black American elected to public office (Ohio, 1855) — was appointed founding dean of Howard University School of Law in 1869. He built it into the primary training ground for Black lawyers, graduating Charlotte Ray among others, and later served as U.S. Minister to Haiti.

Sarah Bradford publishes 'Scenes in the Life of Harriet Tubman' to help Tubman — who had served as a Union spy, scout, and the only woman to lead an armed military raid in the Civil War (the Combahee River Raid, 1863, freeing 700 enslaved people) — raise money for herself and family. The book begins the historical record of Tubman's extraordinary military and liberation work.

John Mercer Langston, already the first Black elected official in the United States, founded and became the first dean of Howard University's School of Law in 1869. The law school he built became the primary institution training Black lawyers in America for decades, producing generations of civil rights attorneys including Thurgood Marshall.

During Reconstruction, Black men were appointed postmasters across the South for the first time, including James Lewis in Louisiana and others in South Carolina and Mississippi. Postmaster positions were significant federal patronage roles. White supremacists targeted Black postmasters for violence; several were killed and post offices burned.

Nat Love, formerly enslaved in Tennessee, headed west after emancipation and became one of the most celebrated cowboys on the frontier, winning the Deadwood City roping and shooting championship in 1876 and earning the nickname Deadwood Dick. His 1907 autobiography documented the significant but often overlooked role of Black cowboys — estimated to make up about a quarter of all cowboys in the post-Civil War West.

During Reconstruction, Black men were appointed as postmasters across the South for the first time, including James Lewis in Louisiana and others in South Carolina and Mississippi. Postmaster appointments were politically significant federal patronage positions. White supremacists targeted Black postmasters for violence; several were killed, and many post offices were burned during the campaign to end Reconstruction.

The Prince Hall Freemasonry movement, founded by Prince Hall who received a charter from the African Grand Lodge of England in 1787, continued to expand significantly during Reconstruction, providing Black men with a mutual aid network, professional connections, and a space for civic leadership at a time when white institutions excluded them. By the late 1860s Prince Hall lodges operated as crucial hubs of Black community organizing across the country.