Jeremiah Haralson
Encyclopedia
Jeremiah Haralson was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama
.
, he was raised as a slave and was self-educated. He moved to Alabama and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He became a minister.
to the Forty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1875 - March 3, 1877). As a member of congress he sought for general amnesty for former confederates to help create harmony between blacks and whites.
In 1876 Haralson ran for reelection. Due to redistricting Haralson was now in the 4th congressional district. This was also the residence of former congressman James T. Rapier
. This was the only district in which black population was overwhelming enough to allow for the election of a Black Republican to congress. Both Haralson and Rapier felt they should be the one to be elected to congress. Rapier won the Republican nomination but Haralson ran as an independent. Haralson received 33.93% of the vote, more than Rapier did, but less than the Democratic candidate Charles M. Shelley
.
Haralson made another run against Shelley in 1878. He received 42.57% of the vote. This was only 6,545 votes, as opposed to the 8,675 he had received two years before, indicating that the end of reconstruction had seen a major decrease in voting.
Haralson was appointed to a Federal position in the United States customhouse in Baltimore, Maryland. In 1872 he had come out very strongly against the Liberal Republicans and in favor of U. S. Grant. His pro-Grant stance had caused him to have disputes with P. B. S. Pinchback
, the African American governor of Louisiana, who served for thirty days.
He was later employed as a clerk at the Department of the Interior; appointed on August 12, 1882 to the Pension Bureau
in Washington, D.C.
; he resigned on August 21, 1884.
He moved to Louisiana
, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits, and from there to Arkansas
in 1904, where he served as pension agent for a short time. He returned to Alabama and settled in Selma
in 1912.
George Haralson - son. George Haralson married Ella Johnson and had nine children.
D.L Haralson, H.T. Haralson, Susie Haralson, Lessie Haralson, Creeda Haralson, Tommy J. Haralson Sr., Ellis Haralson, St. Joseph Haralson, Anthony Haralson, all of the state of Mississippi.
He is the great-great grandfather of Charles Woodson of the NFL Green Bay Packers
.
circa
1916.
He is the only member of the U.S. Congress to have died in such a manner.
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
.
Early life and education
Born on a plantation near Columbus, GeorgiaColumbus, Georgia
Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Muscogee County, Georgia, United States, with which it is consolidated. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 189,885. It is the principal city of the Columbus, Georgia metropolitan area, which, in 2009, had an estimated population of 292,795...
, he was raised as a slave and was self-educated. He moved to Alabama and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He became a minister.
Political life
He was the first black member of the State House of Representatives in 1870; served in the State Senate in 1872. Supposedly Haralson was a candidate for congress in 1868, this being alleged by Christopher in America's Black Congressmen, however the official results do not list him as a candidate in the 1868 Alabama congressional elections. He would however have been running in the Alabama First District, which reported 100% of votes for one candidate, so they may have done a primary previously which may be where he ran and was eliminated. Haralson was elected as a RepublicanRepublican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
to the Forty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1875 - March 3, 1877). As a member of congress he sought for general amnesty for former confederates to help create harmony between blacks and whites.
In 1876 Haralson ran for reelection. Due to redistricting Haralson was now in the 4th congressional district. This was also the residence of former congressman James T. Rapier
James T. Rapier
James Thomas Rapier was a United States Representative from 1873 until 1875. He was one of Alabama's three black congressmen during Reconstruction....
. This was the only district in which black population was overwhelming enough to allow for the election of a Black Republican to congress. Both Haralson and Rapier felt they should be the one to be elected to congress. Rapier won the Republican nomination but Haralson ran as an independent. Haralson received 33.93% of the vote, more than Rapier did, but less than the Democratic candidate Charles M. Shelley
Charles M. Shelley
Charles Miller Shelley was a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army and a postbellum U.S. Representative from Alabama.-Early life:...
.
Haralson made another run against Shelley in 1878. He received 42.57% of the vote. This was only 6,545 votes, as opposed to the 8,675 he had received two years before, indicating that the end of reconstruction had seen a major decrease in voting.
Haralson was appointed to a Federal position in the United States customhouse in Baltimore, Maryland. In 1872 he had come out very strongly against the Liberal Republicans and in favor of U. S. Grant. His pro-Grant stance had caused him to have disputes with P. B. S. Pinchback
P. B. S. Pinchback
Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback was the first non-white and first person of African American descent to become governor of a U.S. state...
, the African American governor of Louisiana, who served for thirty days.
He was later employed as a clerk at the Department of the Interior; appointed on August 12, 1882 to the Pension Bureau
Pension Bureau
The Pension Bureau was a division of the United States Department of the Interior. There was a separate entity at the United States Department of War for handling military pension claims....
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
; he resigned on August 21, 1884.
He moved to Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits, and from there to Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
in 1904, where he served as pension agent for a short time. He returned to Alabama and settled in Selma
Selma, Alabama
Selma is a city in and the county seat of Dallas County, Alabama, United States, located on the banks of the Alabama River. The population was 20,512 at the 2000 census....
in 1912.
Personal life
Jeremiah Haralson's family tree is as followsGeorge Haralson - son. George Haralson married Ella Johnson and had nine children.
D.L Haralson, H.T. Haralson, Susie Haralson, Lessie Haralson, Creeda Haralson, Tommy J. Haralson Sr., Ellis Haralson, St. Joseph Haralson, Anthony Haralson, all of the state of Mississippi.
He is the great-great grandfather of Charles Woodson of the NFL Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
.
Later life and death
Haralson moved to Texas and later to Oklahoma and Colorado; he was a coal miner in Colorado and was killed and eaten by wild animals near Denver, ColoradoDenver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
circa
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1916.
He is the only member of the U.S. Congress to have died in such a manner.