Henry Green Madison (1843 – May 31, 1912) was a civic leader in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

, and the city's first African American city councilman.

Arrival in Austin

Madison came to Austin as a

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in the early 1860s, and by 1863 had opened a shoemaking business and built a small log cabin at what is now 807 E. 11th Street. An active Unionist, in 1867 Madison was president of the Austin chapter of the

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. He was an active participant in

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, and served as an assistant at the Texas Constitutional Convention of 1868–69. In 1870 he served as a captain of an all-black unit in the Sixth Regiment of the

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Political positions

Reconstructionist Governor Edmund J. Davis appointed Madison as an Austin city

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in 1871. That same year he volunteered to serve as a

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Travis County Travis County is located in south central Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,290,188. It is the fifth-most populous county in Texas. Its county seat is Austin, the capital of Texas. The county was established in 1840 and is na ...

, a dangerous job for a black man in Reconstruction-era Texas, due to the continued opposition of black civil rights in the former

Confederate State A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

. Madison held his Alderman office until November 28, 1872. Madison went on to serve as a policeman in the city of Austin and later worked as a

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in the

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Madison cabin

In 1886, Madison built a frame house which completely enclosed the original cabin on 11th Street. The cabin remained hidden until 1968, when a wrecking crew discovered it while tearing down the outer house. The cabin was donated to the city of Austin, and was disassembled and later re-assembled at its current location in Rosewood Neighborhood Park.

Death

Madison died in Austin on May 31, 1912, and is buried in Austin's historic Oakwood Cemetery.''Handbook of Texas Online''
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Madison, Henry Green 1840s births 1912 deaths African-American people in Texas politics African-American politicians during the Reconstruction Era People from Austin, Texas Politicians from Memphis, Tennessee Austin City Council members County officials in Texas 19th-century American politicians 20th-century African-American people