Ferdinand Lee Barnett (Chicago)
Ferdinand Lee Barnett (February 18, 1852 – March 11, 1936) was an American journalist, lawyer, and civil rights activist in Chicago, beginning in the late Reconstruction era.
Ferdinand Lee Barnett | |
|---|---|
Barnett in 1900 | |
| Born | February 18, 1852 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | March 11, 1936 (aged 84) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Resting place | Oak Woods Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Union College of Law |
| Occupations |
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| Political party | Democratic |
| Other political affiliations | Republican |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 6, including Alfreda |
| Relatives | Ferdinand L. Barnett and Alfred S. Barnett (cousins) |
Born in Nashville, Tennessee, during his childhood, his African-American family fled to Windsor, Ontario, Canada, just before the American Civil War. After the war, they settled in Chicago, where Barnett graduated from high school, and then obtained his law degree from what is today Northwestern University School of Law. He was a founding editor of the African-American oriented The Chicago Conservator monthly in 1878. The third black person to be admitted to the practice of law in Illinois, he also became a successful lawyer.
In 1895, Barnett married Ida B. Wells, a fellow journalist and anti-lynching activist. In 1896, he became Illinois' first black assistant state's attorney. He was active in anti-lynching and civil rights causes and was called "one of the foremost citizens Chicago has ever had" by the Chicago Defender.