Graphic of part of the Emancipation Proclamation
Rights and POwer: The POlitics of Reconstruction
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Jonathan Gibbs as a Young Man (Howard University)

Jonathan Gibbs as a Young Man
(Howard University)

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When Jonathan Gibbs became the State Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1873, he oversaw the creation of the state’s first public school system.

Hoping to counteract Democratic charges that blacks were by nature incapable of taking part in government, he wrote sketches of "distinguished colored men," past and present, for a local newspaper.
Copyright 2003
he Meaning of Freedom: Black and White Responses to Slavery From Free Labor to Slave Labor Rights and Power: The Politics of Reconstruction The Ending of Reconstruction Epilogue: The Unfinished Revolution Additional Resources Credits for this Exhibit Link to return to Digital History Home Link to return to Reconstruction Home Introduction