John Chavis

John Chavis (c. 1763–June 15, 1838) was a free Black educator and Presbyterian minister in the American South during the early 19th century. Born in Oxford, North Carolina, he fought for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He was the first African American known to attend college in the U.S., though it is not clear if he graduated. He studied with John Witherspoon at the College of New Jersey and finished his studies at Liberty Hall Academy (present Washington and Lee University) in Virginia, where he was licensed to preach. Later, while working in Raleigh, North Carolina, he established a private school that was highly regarded and attended by both white and Black students (although on differing schedules).