Col. William Murrell, Jr. (c. 1845–1932) also known simply as William Murrell, was an American newspaper editor, and politician.[1] He represented Madison Parish in the Louisiana House of Representatives from for two terms.[2]
William Murrell, Jr. | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Louisiana House of Representatives for Madison Parish | |
| In office 1872 – 1876; 1879–1880 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1845 Georgia, U.S. |
| Relations | William Murrell, Sr. (father) |
| Occupation | Newspaper editor, politician |
Biography
editWilliam Murrell Jr. was born in about 1845 in Georgia, where he was enslaved from birth.[1]
During the start of the American Civil War, he served as valet to General James Longstreet of the Confederate States Army.[1] In 1862, Gen. Longstreet retreated from the war after family tragedy. Murrell joined as a soldier in the 44th Virginia Infantry Regiment of the Confederate States Army.[1] He later served in the Union Army.[3]
His father William Murrell, Sr. served as a politician in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana in the Reconstruction era.[3] Murrell Jr. became a state legislator in Louisiana.[4] He represented Madison Parish in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1872 to 1876, and 1879 to 1880.[2] He opposed the exodus of African Americans to Kansas, known as the exodusters.[5]
Murrell Jr. attended the 1873 State Colored Men's Convention held in New Orleans.[6] During the Reconstruction era, Murrell Jr. edited the newspapers the Madison Vindicator, and the New Jersey Trumpet.[3][7][1]
Murrell Jr. was a major on the staff for Governor William Pitt Kellogg, he was prompted to colonel and oversaw the Louisiana State National Guard.[1] In 1891, he was appointed by secretary John Willock Noble to a role in the United States Department of the Interior.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g Penn, Irvine Garland (1891). The Afro-American Press and Its Editors. Willey & Company. pp. 138–140. ISBN 978-0-598-58268-3.
- ^ a b Vincent, Charles (January 28, 2011). Black Legislators in Louisiana during Reconstruction. SIU Press. ISBN 9780809385812 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c Hogue, James K. (November 15, 2011). Uncivil War: Five New Orleans Street Battles and the Rise and Fall of Radical Reconstruction. LSU Press. ISBN 9780807143926 – via Google Books.
- ^ Foner, Eric (September 18, 1993). Freedom's Lawmakers: A Directory of Black Officeholders During Reconstruction. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-507406-2 – via Google Books.
- ^ Vincent, Charles (September 18, 1999). The African American Experience in Louisiana: From the Civil War to Jim Crow. Center for Louisiana Studies, University of Southwestern Louisiana. ISBN 9781887366373 – via Google Books.
- ^ "State Colored Men's Convention". The New Orleans Republican November 18–20, 1873. 1873. Retrieved 2023-03-23.
- ^ "Madison Vindicator (Delta, Madison Parish, La.) 1874-187?".