History, Art & Archives of the U.S. House of Representatives

Black Americans in Congress in their Own Words

Since 1870, more than 130 African Americans have served in the House. Some, like Joseph Rainey of South Carolina or Adam Clayton Powell of New York, left an enduring mark on the institution through historic firsts and groundbreaking legislation.

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Edition for Educators—Black History Month: African-American Congressmen in Committee

The institution of Jim Crow laws in the late 1800s sharply limited the number of African Americans elected to Congress until passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965. As voting reforms led to greater black political participation and more African-Americans being elected to Congress, Black Members began to establish seniority sufficient to attain chairmanships and better committee assignments.

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Washington, Schlepped Here

This familiar portrait of George Washington hangs in the Rayburn Room of the Capitol. Its location seems to make perfect sense: the capital city bears Washington’s name, he laid the building’s cornerstone, and his likeness is repeated hundreds of times around the city. Nonetheless, the Capitol was never intended to be this painting’s home.

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Categories: Art & Artifacts

(Congress)Men without Hats

British traveler Henry B. Fearon cast a critical gaze from the House Gallery across the frothy sea of nearly 200 Representatives of the 15th Congress (1817-1819). "Spitting boxes are placed at the feet of each member, and, contrary to the practices of the [Senate], members and visitors wear their hats."

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Papering the House

House Page Gilbert Gates and Philip Pitt Campbell
Imagine you are a teenager and unexpectedly come into a small fortune. What would you do with the money? One House Page took an unconventional path with his inheritance in 1923, using the funds to patent his peculiar invention.

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