John R. Lynch

John Roy Lynch (September 10, 1847 - November 2, 1939) was the first African-American Speaker of the House in Mississippi. He was also one of the first African-Americans elected to the U.S House of Representatives during Reconstruction, the period in United States history after the Civil War. Lynch was born a slave near Vidalia, Concordia Parish, Louisiana. His father, Patrick Lynch, an immigrant from Dublin, Ireland, was a planter near Vidalia. His mother Catherine White was a slave of mixed European and African heritage. After John's birth, his father planned to move the family to New Orleans and free them. His fatal illness ended this plan. A friend, promising to free the family, took title of John and his mother from Patrick before...