Robert A. Kerr (1842 – January 12, 1912) or (December 23, 1833 – January 7, 1913) or (1841 – April 28, 1912) was an American politician, barber, bookkeeper, civic leader, and shipping clerk. He helped establish the first high school for African Americans in

Bastrop County, Texas Bastrop County is located in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in Central Texas and its county seat is Bastrop, Texas, Bastrop. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 97,216. Bastrop County is included in the ...

, when he was a member of the Bastrop County School Board. Foner, Eric (1996) Freedom's Lawmakers. ''Louisiana State University Press''. p. 125. He was born in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

and his father, known as Major A. Kerr, owned him. He was banished from San Antonio for aiding runaway slaves. He was elected to the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

as a member of the

Greenback Party The Greenback Party (known successively as the Independent Party, the National Independent Party and the Greenback Labor Party) was an Political parties in the United States, American political party with an Competition law, anti-monopoly ideolog ...

in 1880. He served on the Military Affairs Committee and was an opponent of the convict lease system. He ran unsuccessfully for reelection in 1882 as a Republican. Kerr was chosen as a delegate to the

1872 Republican National Convention The 1872 Republican National Convention was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 5–6, 1872. President Ulysses S. Grant was unanimously nominated for reelection by the convention's 752 delegates. Massachusetts Senator Henry Wilson replace ...

and was chosen as an alternate delegate for the

1892 Republican National Convention The 1892 Republican National Convention was held at the Industrial Exposition Building, Minneapolis, Minnesota, from June 7 to June 10, 1892. The party nominated President Benjamin Harrison for re-election on the first ballot and Whitelaw Reid ...

. He and Harriel G. Geiger were the only African-Americans to be elected into the

Texas Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a p ...

as representatives for the

. He had an adopted child with his wife Sarah. Kerr is buried in Fairview Cemetery in Bastrop.

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Members of the Texas House of Representatives 1912 deaths Texas Greenbacks People from Bastrop County, Texas 19th-century African-American politicians 19th-century African-American businesspeople 19th-century American businesspeople African-American state legislators in Texas Politicians from New Orleans 19th-century births 19th-century members of the Texas Legislature {{Texas-politician-stub