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What Happened on this Day in History
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1870 Joseph H. Rainey Becomes The Second Black U.S Congressman
Rainey, whose parents both started their lives as slaves in the US, began his career following his father’s profession as a Barber.
He married and moved to Bermuda, where he set himself up as a bartender and barber, supporting his wife who became a successful dress maker in the community.
Upon his return to his home state of Carolina, Rainey immediately involved himself in politics, joining the executive committee of the state Republican Party in 1866.
In 1870, Rainey was elected to the State Senate of South Carolina, later filling a vacancy in the 41st Congress of the USA left by a senator who had been accused of corruption.
He was re-elected to the post four times, making him the longest serving black senator until 1950, when William L Dawson took the mantle from him.
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