Thomas Bayne (Sam Nixon)

Not to be confused with the Union Army Civil War officer and member of the House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Thomas McKee Bayne.
Thomas Bayne
Born
Sam Nixon

circa 1820 or 1824-1825
North Carolina, US
DiedJuly 5, 1888
Petersburg, Virginia, US
Occupation(s)dentist, preacher
Known forUnderground Railroad
Political partyRepublican
SpouseEdna
Childrendaughter

Thomas Bayne (c. 1824 – July 5, 1888) (also known as "Sam Nixon") was an African American Republican politician. Born a slave, he became a dental assistant and Underground Railroad conductor in Norfolk, Virginia, before escaping to New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he changed his name to Thomas Bayne.

Returning to Norfolk after the American Civil War, Bayne worked as a dentist and also preached; he became a leader in the African American community. He was elected a delegate to the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1868 as a Republican,[1] but was never again elected to another office.[2]

  1. ^ "Bayne, Thomas (ca. 1824–1888)". encyclopediavirginia.org. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  2. ^ Cynthia Miller Leonard, The General Assembly of Virginia: July 30, 1619-January 11, 1978 (Richmond: Virginia State Library 1978) p 508