Francis Lewis Cardozo

Francis Lewis Cardozo (1 January 1836 – 22 July 1903) was a clergyman, politician, and educator. He was the first African American to hold a statewide office in the United States. He was born in Charleston, South Carolina and died in Washington, DC.

Early years

Francis Cardozo was born in Charleston, South Carolina on 1 January 1836. He was the son of a free black woman, Lydia Weston, and a Jewish man, Isaac Cardozo, who worked at the customhouse. He attended schools for free blacks. Cardozo worked as a carpenter and a shipbuilder.

In 1858, he matriculated at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. Later, he attended seminaries in Edinburgh and London. He was ordained a Presbyterian minister.

In 1864, he became pastor of the Temple Street Congregational Church in New Haven, Connecticut. He married Catherine Rowena Howell. In 1865, he became an agent of the American Missionary Association in Charleston, South Carolina. He succeeded his brother, Thomas, as superintendent of an American Missionary Association school. He rebuilt this school into the Avery Normal Institute, which educated African Americans.

Political career

He was a delegate to the 1868 South Carolina constitutional convention. As chair of the education committee and advocated integrated public schools.

When elected secretary of state in 1868, Cardozo became the first African American to hold a statewide office in the United States. He reformed the South Carolina Land Commission, which distributed land to former slaves.

He was elected state treasurer in 1872. After he did not cooperate with corruption, some legislators unsuccessfully tried to impeach Cardozo in 1874. He was reelected in 1874 and 1876. In the turbulent period following the election, Democrats regained the state government. After Governor Wade Hampton III demanded his resignation, Cardozo left office on 1 May 1877.

He was tried for conspiracy in November, 1877. Despite questionable evidence, he was found guilty and served over six months in jail. After federal election fraud charges were dropped against some Democrats, he was pardoned by Governor William Dunlap Simpson in 1879.

He moved to Washington, DC, and accepted a position with the Treasury Department.

Educator

In 1884, Cardozo returned to education as a principal of the Colored Preparatory High School. He introduced a business curriculum and made it a leading school for African Americans. He served as principal until 1896.

Cardozo died in Washington on 22 July 1903. [Edgar, Walter, ed. "The South Carolina Encyclopedia", University of South Carolina Press, 2006, pp. 130-131, ISBN 1-57003-598-2]

Cardozo Senior High School in northwest Washington, DC, is named for Francis Cardozo.

References

Persondata
NAME = Cardozo, Francis Lewis
ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Clergyman, politician, educator
DATE OF BIRTH = (1 January 1836
PLACE OF BIRTH = Charleston, South Carolina
DATE OF DEATH = 22 July 1903
PLACE OF DEATH = Washington, DC.