Thomas Peterson, First African-american
by Science Source
Title
Thomas Peterson, First African-american
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Science Source
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Photograph - Photograph
Description
On March 31, 1870, one day after the final ratification of the 15th Amendment, which allowed him the right to vote, Thomas Mundy Peterson (1824-1904) became the first African American to cast a ballot in a U.S. election under the provisions of the 15th Amendment. The citizens of Perth Amboy, N.J. were voting to settle a disagreement over whether to revise the town charter or abandon it in favor of a township form of government. Peterson worked as a school janitor between 1870 and 1878 and was a general handyman in Perth Amboy. Active in the Republican Party and the Prohibition Party, he was also the city's first black person to serve on a jury. Photographed byWilliam R. Tobias in 1884.
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May 25th, 2020
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