DescriptionReconstruction-Era Cabinet Card of the "Radical" Black Legislators in South Carolina. Cabinet card circa 1868-1872 depicting lawmakers (many of whom were recently liberated African Americans), titled in the albumen "Radical Members of the So Ca Legislature." Attributed to J.G. Gibbes and probably printed in South Carolina, this cabinet card is one of several versions of this image circulated to frighten the white population in South Carolina and the South of the dangers of Reconstruction, which provided equal political and social rights to African Americans. Congress implemented the Reconstruction Act of 1867, which redesigned the governing bodies of Southern states after the Civil War. Not only did African Americans receive the right to vote, but they also were allowed to serve in the government. When South Carolina rejoined the Union in 1868 under the Reconstruction Act, they had the first state legislature in which the majority of members, fifty of sixty-three, were African American.
The back of the card offers a key to the images on the front, with the names linked to the men on each line, reading from left to right. Creased corners, couple of edge dings, slight waviness, but generally clean & bright, without any effect on the images. The reverse of the card shows shadows of glue where the key was glued on. This image was produced in several sizes, with the cabinet card version being uncommon. A nice item that highlights the fierce opposition faced by African Americans in the South during Reconstruction.
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