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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC09400.136 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of letters of the first African American to serve a full term in the Senate |
| Title | R.H. Herberb to Blanche Kelso Bruce regarding Poland Water, his health, and asking that he consider a loan to him |
| Date | 29 March 1885 |
| Author | Herberb, R.H., (fl. 1885) |
| Recipient | Kelso Bruce, Blanche |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | This letter is broken up into parts with each topic being centered and underlined followed by an explanation. The first section is related to Poland Water which seems to be used as some type of medical cure; the second section involves the Senator's health, the third section discuses a visit by John R Lynch. The fourth section discuses a debt owed to the Senator by W.H. Dillard, which has been partially repaid. The fifth section is Herberb asking for the Senator to consider a loan to him. The sixth section discuses an account that he has with the Senator and that Herberb requests an accounting card so he is aware of the amount. The Seventh section discusses Smith trying to reduce the staff at the offices. The eighth section discusses a bill for lettering the door to Senator Bruce's office door. The ninth section details Pinchback's interaction with a secretary there that he keeps visiting. The tenth section discusses a telegram that Herberb was mentioned in. The eleventh and final section discusses the possibility of Herberb coming to Washington to see the Senator. |
| Subjects | African American History African Americans in Government Congress Reconstruction Government and Civics Health and Medical Debt Finance |
| People | Bruce, Blanche Kelso (1841-1898) Herberb, R.H. (fl. 1885) |
| Place written | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Theme | Government & Politics; African Americans |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1860-1945 |
| Additional Information | Blanche Kelso Bruce was born into slavery near Farmville, Prince Edward County, Va. on March 1 1841. He was tutored by his master's son, but left his master at the beginning of the civil war and taught school in Hannibal Mo. After the civil war Bruce became a planter in Mississippi, and a member of the Mississippi Levee Board, and Sheriff and Tax Collector for Bolivar County from 1872-1875. Bruce was then elected as a Republican to the United States Senate, where he served from March 4 1875 - March 3 1881. Bruce was the first African American to serve a full term in the U.S. Senate. In 1881 Bruce was appointed by President James Garfield as the Register of the Treasury. Bruce then went on to serve as the Recorder of Deeds for the District of Colombia from 1891-1893, returning to the office of Register of the Treasury from 1897 until his death on March 17, 1898. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |