James Conquest Cross Black (May 9, 1842 – October 1, 1928) was a nineteenth-century politician and lawyer from

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Early life

Born in

Stamping Ground, Kentucky Stamping Ground is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in Scott County, Kentucky, Scott County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 643 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is part of the Lexington, Kentucky, ...

, Black attended common schools as a child, attended high school in

New Castle, Kentucky New Castle is a home rule-class city in Henry County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. As of the 2010 census the population was 912. African Americans attended New Castle Colored School prior to integration. History N ...

and graduated from

Georgetown College Georgetown College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Georgetown, Kentucky. Chartered in 1829, Georgetown was the first Baptist college west of the Appalachian Mountains. The college offers over 40 undergraduate degrees and a Mas ...

in 1862. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, he enlisted as a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

in Company A of the 9th Kentucky Cavalry in the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

. After the close of the war, Black moved to

Augusta, Georgia Augusta is a city on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies directly across the Savannah River from North Augusta, South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Augusta, the third mos ...

in 1865, studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1866, commencing practice in Augusta.

Career

He was a member of the

Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republican Party (United States), Repu ...

from 1873 to 1877, served as president of the Augusta Orphan Asylum from 1879 to 1886, was a member of the Augusta city council and was Augusta city attorney. Black was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

in 1892, defeating incumbent Populist Tom Watson. Black and Watson faced off again in the election of 1894. Black was declared the winner of the election but Watson charged that the vote was fraudulent. Black agreed to resign his seat just after the opening of the 54th Congress so that a new election could be held. In the October 1895 special election, Black prevailed over Watson again, and thus took his seat back to fill the vacancy caused by his own resignation.Utica Journal. Article: Thomas E. Watson
/ref> He served in the House until 1897, not being a candidate for renomination in 1896. Afterward, he resumed practicing law in

until his death.

Death

Black died in Augusta on October 1, 1928. He was interred in Magnolia Cemetery in Augusta.

Notes

External links

* * ' 1842 births 1928 deaths Members of the Georgia House of Representatives Kentucky Democrats Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Confederate States Army soldiers People from New Castle, Kentucky People from Scott County, Kentucky People of Kentucky in the American Civil War Politicians from Augusta, Georgia Georgia (U.S. state) city council members Georgetown College (Kentucky) alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Georgia General Assembly {{AmericanCivilWar-bio-stub