George Lewis Ruffin
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Lewis Ruffin (16 December 1834 - 19 November 1886) was the first African-American to graduate from Harvard Law School, and the first African American to serve on the Boston City Council, the Massachusetts state legislature, and as Boston's first black municipal judge.
[edit] Biography
He was born in Richmond, Virginia and married Josephine Ruffin. He died in Boston, Massachusetts in 1886.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ "George Lewis Ruffin", Appleton's Cyclopedia. Retrieved on 2008-06-05. "Ruffin, George Lewis, lawyer, born in Richmond, Virginia, 16 December, 1834; died in Boston, Massachusetts, 19 November, 1886. He was of African descent, but of free parentage, and was educated at the public schools in Boston. He became a barber, studied law, and after graduation at Harvard in 1869 practised with success in Boston, served in the legislature as a Republican, and was appointed by Governor Benjamin F. Butler judge of the municipal court in the Charlestown district in 1883, being the only colored justice that held office in New England."
