The ''Colored Citizen'' was the first
African American newspaper
African-American newspapers (also known as the Black press or Black newspapers) are news publications in the United States serving African-American communities. Samuel Cornish and John Brown Russwurm started the first African-American periodi ...
published in
Mississippi. It was founded by
Henry Mayson in 1867, and it probably died by 1868. According to Mayson, the paper sought racial equality and the elimination of racial discrimination, including in school funding schemes. No surviving copies of the paper have been located.
Publication and demise
The ''Colored Citizen'' was founded in 1867 by
Henry Mayson, a leader for the black community in and around the urban city of
Vicksburg Vicksburg most commonly refers to:
* Vicksburg, Mississippi, a city in western Mississippi, United States
* The Vicksburg Campaign, an American Civil War campaign
* The Siege of Vicksburg, an American Civil War battle
Vicksburg is also the name of ...
,
Mississippi. It was the first
African American newspaper in the state, and it was commercially viable. Its intended publication date was May 11, 1867; Mayson published a prospectus in the ''
Vicksburg Herald Vicksburg most commonly refers to:
* Vicksburg, Mississippi, a city in western Mississippi, United States
* The Vicksburg Campaign, an American Civil War campaign
* The Siege of Vicksburg, an American Civil War battle
Vicksburg is also the name of ...
'' calling for equal educational opportunities for black and white children, the right for black men to hold public office, and the eradication of legally-enforced racial discrimination. A note attached to the prospectus in the ''
Daily Clarion'' says it will be published "by an intelligent colored man" in opposition to black political "antagonism".
The precise contents of the ''Colored Citizen'' are unknown since no surviving copies have been located, but the paper likely contained four pages, held advertisements, sold annual subscriptions for between $1 and $2, and may have been
published weekly. It was
Republican in political orientation. The paper likely died within a few months of its founding, though the precise dates of its dissolution are not known.
It was succeeded by the ''
Citizen
Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection".
Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...
'' of
Canton
Canton may refer to:
Administrative division terminology
* Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland
* Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French
Arts and ent ...
in 1869 and the ''
Field Hand'' of
Jackson around 1870. An unrelated paper also called the ''
Colored Citizen'' was published in Jackson, founded in 1868. That paper was established by reverend
James D. Lynch and politician
James J. Spelman
James J. Spelman (January 18, 1841 – June 25, 1894) was a journalist and politician in New York and Mississippi. His early career was as a journalist and a stage performer and manager in New York City. During the American Civil War (1861–186 ...
.
Notes and references
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
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{{refend
1867 establishments in Mississippi
African-American history of Mississippi
Defunct African-American newspapers
Defunct newspapers published in Mississippi
Newspapers established in 1867