Published February 2010 — Download PDF of the original newspaper column
Byrd's-Eye View By U.S Senator Robert C. Byrd February is African American History Month Part I. West Virginia History Made West Virginians are aware that a number of nationally prominent African Americans like Carter G. Woodson and Booker T. Washington are from our State. And West Virginians are aware that many nationally significant events in African American history, like John Brown's Raid and the founding of the Niagra Movement, took place in West Virginia. This February, I want to recognize African Americans who have made and are making history on the State level. Christopher Payne was the first African American to serve in the West Virginia Legislature. Born in 1848, Payne was educated by his mother, later attended night school in Charleston and became one of the first black teachers in Summers County. He was ordained as a Baptist minister, and organized the Second Baptist Church in Hinton. Payne also established three newspapers, West Virginia Enterprise, The Pioneer, and the Mountain Eagle. In 1896, this talented and accomplished man was elected to the State Legislature. In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt named Mr. Payne as Consul General to the Danish West Indies (present day Virgin Islands). When the United States acquired the islands in 1917, Payne was named prosecuting attorney in St. Thomas. Minnie Buckingham Harper was a housewife in McDowell County who was destined to make history. Born in 1886, she married E. Howard-Harper of Welch, who was elected to the West Virginia State Legislature. When Delegate Harper died in 1928, Governor Howard Gore appointed his wife to fill his unexpired term. When Mrs. Harper took her seat in the State Legislature, she became the first African American woman to serve in a legislative body in the United States! Elizabeth Simpson Drewry was the first African American woman elected to the West Virginia State legislature. Born in 1893, Drewry graduated from Bluefield State College, and taught in the public schools of McDowell County. In 1950, she was elected to the State Legislature, where she served for 13 years. Delegate Drewry chaired both the Military Affairs and Health Committees, but established herself as an advocate for education, labor, and health care reform. She is credited with introducing important pieces of legislation, including a bill to compensate victims of pneumoconiosis ("black lung") and legislation that led to the constitutional amendment that allowed women to serve on juries. In 1956, Ebony magazine honored her as one of the ten outstanding black women in government. In my next column, I will focus on an outstanding West Virginia African American leader who is making history today. February 10, 2010