Joseph H. Stuart

Joseph H. Stuart
Image of Joseph H. Stuart who was born in Barbados and after a good education became a lawyer and legislator
Born1854
DiedApril 4, 1910(1910-04-04) (aged 55–56)
Denver, Colorado
NationalityNaturalized American, born in the West Indies
Occupation(s)Lawyer, legislator, teacher
Years activeBefore 1877–1910
Known forA Colorado state bill for equal access to public places for all

Joseph H. Stuart, also known as J. H. Stuart (1854–1910), from the British West Indies, settled in Colorado and in 1891 was the second black lawyer that practiced law.[1] In 1895, he became the second African American legislator in the state's history, after Rep. John T. Gunnell.[2] He worked on a bill to ensure equal access to public places, regardless of a person's race. The bill passed but was not very effective in practice due to racial discrimination and lack of resources to enforce the law. Before coming to Denver, he was an educator in South Carolina and a lawyer in Kansas.

  1. ^ Smith Jr, J. Clay (1999). Emancipation: The Making of the Black Lawyer, 1844-1944. University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 490–491, 518. ISBN 978-0-8122-1685-1.
  2. ^ "Colorado House Journal 1881". Colorado House of Representative Journal 1881. 1881: 1781. 1881 – via Law Collections of Univ of Colorado.