State Conventions
Starting in 1830 and continuing until well after the Civil War, free, freed and self-emancipated Blacks came together in state and national political conventions. They strategized about how they might achieve educational, labor, and legal justice during decades when Black rights were constricting nationally and locally as well as during the intervening postwar years, before the very promise of a democracy that included all citizens was once foreclosed again. The Colored Conventions movement took place during critical decades which witnessed devastating anti-Black race riots and the growing popularity of the American Colonization Society; the Fugitive Slave Law and the proliferation of derogatory representations of Blacks; the Civil War and Reconstruction; and the return of Black disenfranchisement in legal, labor, and educational spheres in the late nineteenth century. Speakers at conventions responded by calling for community-based action that gathered funds, established schools and literary societies, and urged the necessity of organizing in what would become a decades-long campaign for civil and human rights. The convention minutes collected here illustrate the immense struggles and the profound courage of those who made it a point to organize and stand for what was rightly theirs.
Most conventions were organized either as state or national meetings, though there were some regional meetings for New England and the southern states, for example. You may also search by region, though these are twenty-first century terms and don’t reflect the changing borders of the US in the nineteenth century itself. This collection is preserved in the University of Delaware Library Institutional Repository (UDSpace).
State Conventions
Select a convention to learn more information, to view minutes in a document viewer, or to download minutes in PDF format.
Note to visitors: In most cases, each convention has one primary document associated with it. When multiple documents are available for a convention, they are presented below the respective conventions with indentations.
Select a state:
ALABAMA
1867 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Mobile
- Report on the 1867 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Mobile published in the North American (May 4, 1867)
- Report on the 1867 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Mobile published in the Salt Lake Daily Telegraph (May 5, 1867)
- Report on the 1867 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Mobile published in the Daily Evening Bulletin (May 6, 1867)
- Report on the 1867 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Mobile published in the Milwaukee Daily Sentinel (May 6, 1867)
- Report on the 1867 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Mobile published in the Bangor Daily Whig and Courier (May 8, 1867)
- Report on the 1867 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Mobile published in the Bangor Daily Whig and Courier (May 24, 1867)
1871 Alabama Labor Union Convention
1874 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Montgomery
- Report on the 1874 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Montgomery published in the Lowell Daily Citizen (December 4, 1874)
- Report on the 1874 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Montgomery published in the Daily Inter Ocean (December 9, 1874)
- Report on the 1874 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Montgomery published in the Galveston Daily News (December 10, 1874)
- Report on the 1874 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Montgomery published in the Daily Inter Ocean (December 10, 1874)
- Report on the 1874 Alabama State Convention of Colored Men held in Montgomery published in the Bangor Daily Whig and Courier (December 14, 1874)
1874 Alabama Labor Convention of Colored Men held in Montgomery
ARKANSAS
1865 Arkansas State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Little Rock
1883 Arkansas State Convention held in Little Rock
CALIFORNIA
1855 California State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Sacramento
1856 California State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Sacramento
1857 California State Convention of Colored People held in San Francisco
1865 California State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Sacramento
1889 State Convention of the California Afro-American League (Seeking Records)
CONNECTICUT
1849 Connecticut State Convention of Coloured Men held in New Haven
1854 Connecticut State Convention held in Middletown
1855 Connecticut State Convention of Colored Men held in Hartford
1865 Connecticut State Convention of Colored Men held in New Haven
1886 Connecticut State Convention of Colored People (Seeking Records)
DELAWARE
1873 Delaware State Convention of Colored People held in Dover
1881 State Convention of the Colored People of Delaware (Seeking Records)
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
1873 State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Washington, DC (Seeking Records)
FLORIDA
1884 Florida State Convention held in Gainesville
GEORGIA
1866 Georgia State Freedmen's Convention held in Augusta (Jan. 10)
1866 Georgia State Freedmen's Convention held in Augusta (Apr. 4)
1866 Georgia State Convention of the Equal Rights and Educational Association held in Macon
1869 Georgia State Colored Convention held in Macon
1871 Georgia State Convention of Colored Men held in Atlanta
1873 Georgia State Convention of Colored People held in Macon
1877 Georgia State Educational Convention of Colored Men held in Hawkinsville
1888 Georgia State Union Brotherhood Convention held in Macon
ILLINOIS
1853 Illinois State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Chicago
1856 Illinois State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Alton
1866 Illinois State Convention of Colored Men held in Galesburg
1880 Illinois State Convention of Colored People held in Springfield (Seeking Records)
1883 Illinois State Convention of Colored People held in Springfield (Seeking Records)
1885 Illinois State Convention of Colored Men held in Springfield (Seeking Records)
1889 Illinois State Convention of Colored Men held in Springfield (Seeking Records)
INDIANA
1842 Indiana State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Indianapolis
1851 Indiana State Convention of People of Color held in Indianapolis
1859 Indiana State Convention of Colored Men held in Indianapolis
1865 Indiana State Convention of Colored People held in Indianapolis
1866 Indiana State Equal Rights League Convention held in Indianapolis (Seeking Records)
1871 Indiana State Convention of Colored Men held in Indianapolis (Seeking Records)
IOWA
1853 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Muscatine
- A report on the 1853 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Muscatine published in the Muscatine Journal (July 1, 1853)
- Report on the 1853 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Muscatine published in the Muscatine Journal (July 27, 1853)
1857 Iowa State Convention of Colored Men held in Muscatine
1865 Iowa State Convention of Colored People held in Davenport
1868 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Des Moines
1868 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Muscatine
1876 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Oskaloosa
- Report on the 1876 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Oskaloosa published in the Toledo Chronicle (January 13, 1876)
- A Report on the 1876 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Oskaloosa published in the Toledo Chronicle (January 13, 1876)
- Report on the 1876 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Oskaloosa published in the Muscatine Weekly Journal (January 14, 1876)
1885 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Oskaloosa (Seeking Records)
1885/6 Iowa State Colored Convention possibly held in Des Moines (Seeking Records)
1891 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Cedar Rapids
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Report on the 1891 Iowa State Colored Convention held in Cedar Rapids published in the Sunday Herald and Intelligencer (August 16, 1891)
KANSAS
1863 Kansas State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Leavenworth
1866 Kansas State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Lawrence
1887 Kansas State Convention of the Afro-American League held in Topeka (Seeking Records)
1882 Kansas State Convention of Colored Men held in Parsons
KENTUCKY
1866 Kentucky State Convention of Colored Men held in Lexington
1869 Kentucky State Colored Educational Convention held in Louisville (Seeking Records)
1867 Kentucky State Convention of Colored Men held in Lexington
1871 Kentucky State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Frankfort
1873 Kentucky State Convention held in Frankfort
1877 Kentucky State Colored Educational Convention held in Frankfort
1885 Kentucky Colored State Convention in Lexington
LOUISIANA
1865 Louisiana State Conventionof Colored People held in New Orleans
1870 Louisiana State Convention held in New Orleans (Seeking Records)
1871 Louisiana State Convention of Colored People held in New Orleans (Seeking Records)
1873 Louisiana State Convention held in New Orleans
1874 Louisiana State Convention (Seeking Records)
1879 Louisiana Convention held in New Orleans (Seeking Records)
1899 Louisiana State Convention of Colored Men held in New Orleans
MAINE
1841 Maine State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Portland
1850 Maine State Colored Convention held in Portland
MARYLAND
1852 Maryland State Convention of Free Colored People held in Baltimore
1866 Maryland State Convention of Colored People held in Baltimore
1868 Maryland State Convention of Colored Men held in Baltimore
1869 Maryland State Colored Convention held in Baltimore (Seeking Records)
1869 Maryland State Colored Labor Convention (Seeking Records)
1869 Maryland State Convention of Colored Mechanics held in Baltimore
1882 Maryland State Convention held in Baltimore (Seeking Records)
1890 Maryland State Convention of Colored People held in Boston (Seeking Records)
MASSACHUSETTS
1854 Massachusetts State Council of Colored Citizens held in Boston
1858 Massachusetts State Convention of Colored Citizens held in New Bedford
1872 New England States Convention of Colored Citizens held in Boston, Massachusetts (Seeking Records)
1883 Massachusetts State Convention of Colored Men held in Boston (Seeking Records)
1892 Massachusetts State Convention of Colored Men held in Boston (Seeking Records)
MICHIGAN
1843 Michigan State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Detroit
1865 Michigan State Equal Rights League Convention held in Detroit
MINNESOTA
1869 Minnesota State Convention of Colored Citizens held in St. Paul
MISSISSIPPI
1865 Mississippi State Colored Convention held in Vicksburg, MS
- Report on the 1865 Mississippi State Colored Convention held in Vicksburg, MS (The Liberator, October 27, 1865)
- Report on the 1865 Mississippi State Colored Convention held in Vicksburg, MS (The Anglo-African, November 11, 1865)
- Report on the 1865 Mississippi State Colored Convention held in Vicksburg, MS (The Anglo-African, November 18, 1865)
1884 Mississippi State Convention of Colored Men held in Jackson
MISSOURI
1870 Missouri State Colored People's Educational Convention held in Jefferson City
1877 Missouri State Convention of Colored Teachers held in St. Louis (Seeking Records)
1878 Colored Laborer’s and Business Men’s Industrial Convention held in Kansas City, Missouri (Seeking Records)
1884 Missouri State Convention of Colored Teachers (Seeking Records)
NEBRASKA
1871 Nebraska State Convention held in Omaha (Seeking Records)
1872 Nebraska State Convention of Colored People held in Omaha
NEW JERSEY
1849 New Jersey State Convention of Coloured Citizens held in Trenton
1865 New Jersey State Convention of Coloured Men held in Trenton
1866 New Jersey State Colored Convention held in Gloucester (Seeking Records)
1868 New Jersey State Convention of the Colored Men held in Trenton (Seeking Records)
1873 New Jersey State Convention of New Citizens held in New Brunswick
1892 New Jersey State Convention of Colored Men held in Trenton
NEW YORK
1840 New York State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Albany
1841 New York State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Troy
1843 New York State Convention of Colored People held in Rochester (Seeking Records)
1844 New York State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Schenectady
1845 New York State Free Suffrage Convention held in Geneva
1849 New York State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Hudson
1851 New York State Convention of Colored People held in Albany
1854 New York State Council of Colored People held in Albany
1855 New York State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Albany
1855 New York State Convention of Colored Men held in Troy
1858 New York State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Troy
1863 State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Poughkeepsie NY
1866 New York State Convention of Colored Men held in Albany
1870 New York State Convention of Colored Voters held in Syracuse
1870 New York State Labor Convention held in Saratoga
1872 New York State Convention of Colored Men held in Troy (Seeking Records)
1874 New York State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Utica (Seeking Records)
1891 New York State Convention of the Afro-American League (Seeking Records)
NORTH CAROLINA
1865 North Carolina State Convention of Colored People held in Raleigh
- Report on the 1865 North Carolina State Convention (The Liberator)
- Report on the 1865 North Carolina State Convention (The Christian Recorder)
- Letter to the 1865 North Carolina State Convention by William W. Coleman
1866 North Carolina State Freedmen's Convention held in Raleigh
1877 North Carolina State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Raleigh
OHIO
1837 Ohio State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Columbus (Seeking Records)
- Report on the 1837 Ohio State Convention published in The Philanthropist (September 8, 1837)
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Report on the 1837 Ohio State Convention published in The Philanthropist (November 8, 1837)
1843 Ohio State Colored People's State Convention held in Columbus (Seeking Records)
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Report on the 1843 Ohio State Convention published in The Philanthropist (November 4, 1843)
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Report on the 1843 Ohio State Convention published in The Palladium of Liberty (December 27, 1843)
1844 Ohio State Convention of Colored Citizens
1849 Ohio State Convention of Coloured Citizens held in Columbus
1850 Ohio State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Columbus
1851 Ohio State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Columbus
1852 Ohio State Convention of Colored Freemen held in Cincinnati
1853 Ohio State Convention of Colored Freemen held in Columbus
1856 Ohio State Convention of Colored Men held in Columbus
1857 Ohio State Convention of Colored Men held in Columbus
1858 Ohio State Convention of Colored Men held in Cincinnati
1865 Ohio State Convention of Colored Men held in Xenia
1867 Ohio State Equal Rights League Convention held in Cincinnati
1867 Ohio State Equal Rights League Convention held in Cincinnati (Seeking Records)
1871 Ohio State Convention of Colored Men held in Columbus
1873 Ohio State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Chillicothe (Seeking Records)
1883 Ohio State Convention of Colored People held in Columbus (Seeking Records)
1886 Ohio State Convention of Colored People held in Alliance (Seeking Records)
PENNSYLVANIA
1841 Pennsylvania State Convention of Colored Freemen held in Pittsburgh
1848 Pennsylvania State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Harrisburg
1851 Pennsylvania State Convention of Colored People held in Sandy Lake (Seeking Records)
1865 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention held in Harrisburg (Feb. 8-10)
1865 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention held in Harrisburg (Aug. 9-10)
1866 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention held in Pittsburgh
1868 Pennsylvania State Convention of Colored Men held in Pittsburgh (Seeking Records)
1868 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention held in Williamsport
1869 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention held in Philadelphia (Seeking Records)
1872 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention held in Harrisburg
1873 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention (Seeking Records)
1874 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention (Seeking Records)
1877 Pennsylvania State Equal Rights League Convention held in Erie (Seeking Records)
1898 Pennsylvania State Convention of the Afro-American League (Seeking Records)
SOUTH CAROLINA
1865 South Carolina State Convention of Colored People held in Charleston
1876 Charleston City Meeting of Colored Citizens (Seeking Records)
1876 South Carolina State Conference of Colored Citizens held in Columbia
1883 South Carolina State Convention of Colored Men held in Columbia
TENNESSEE
1865 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville
1866 Tennessee State Convention of Colored People held in Nashville
1871 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Nashville
1874 Tennessee State Convention held in Nashville (Seeking Records)
1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men
- Report on 1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville, TN published in the Morristown Gazette (January 9, 1884)
- A report on 1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville, TN published in the Clarksville Weekly Chronicle (February 9, 1884)
- Report on 1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville, TN published in the Milan Exchange (February 16, 1884)
- Report on 1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville, TN published in the Cleveland Daily Herald (February 29, 1884)
- Report on 1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville, TN published in the Clarksville Weekly Chronicle (March 8, 1884)
- A report on the 1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville, TN published in the Memphis Daily Appeal (March 4, 1884)
- Report on 1884 Tennessee State Convention of Colored Men held in Nashville, TN published in the New York Age (March 15, 1884)
TEXAS
1866 Texas State Central Committee of Colored Men (Seeking Records)
1869 Texas State Colored Labor Convention held in Galveston (Seeking Records)
1871 Texas State Colored Convention held in Houston
1873 Texas State Convention of Colored Citizens held in Brenham
1879 Texas State Convention of Colored People held in Houston
1880 Texas State Farmers Association Convention held in Dallas
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- Report on the 1880 Texas State Farmers Association Convention held in Dallas published in The San Marcos Free Press (February 14, 1880)
- A report on the 1880 Texas State Farmers Association Convention held in Dallas published in the Dallas Daily Herald (February 17, 1880)
- Report on the 1880 Texas State Farmers Association Convention held in Dallas published in the St. Louis Daily Globe-Democrat (February 17, 1880)
- A report on the 1880 Texas State Farmers Association Convention held in Dallas published in the Milwaukee Daily Sentinel (February 18, 1880)
- A report on the 1880 Texas State Farmers Association Convention held in Dallas published in the Arkansas Gazette (February 20, 1880)
- A report on the 1880 Texas State Farmers Association Convention held in Dallas published in the Galveston Daily News (February 26, 1880)
1883 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Austin
- Report on the 1883 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Austin published in the New York Age (April 21, 1883)
- A report on the 1883 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Austin published in The New York Globe (April 21, 1883)
- Report on the 1883 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Austin published in the Austin Weekly Statesman (July 19, 1883)
- Report on the 1883 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Austin published in The San Antonio Light (August 13, 1883)
1884 Texas State Convention in Houston
1886 Colored Men's State Convention held in Brenham, TX (Seeking Records)
1889 Austin County Convention of Colored Men held in Bellville, TX
1889 Caldwell County Convention of Colored Men held in Lockhart, TX
1889 McLennan County Convention of Colored Men held in Waco
1889 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Waco
- Report on the 1889 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Waco published in the Austin Weekly Statesman (August 15, 1889)
- Report on the 1889 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Waco published in the Galveston Daily News (August 21, 1889)
- Report on the 1889 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Waco published in the Galveston Daily News (August 21, 1889)
- Report on the 1889 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Waco published in The Galveston Daily News (August 25, 1889)
- Report on the 1889 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Waco published in the Austin Weekly Statesman (August 29, 1889)
- Report on the 1889 Texas State Convention held in Waco published in The True Northerner (September 11, 1889)
1891 Colored Men's State Convention held in Houston (Seeking Records)
1895 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Houston
- Report on the 1895 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Houston published in Galveston Daily News (May 24, 1895)
- Report on the 1895 Texas State Convention of Colored Men held in Houston published in The Daily Herald (May 28, 1895)
VIRGINIA
1865 City Meeting of the Colored Citizens of Norfolk VA
1865 Virginia State Convention of Colored People held in Alexandria
1869 Virginia State Convention held in Richmond (Seeking Records)
1885 Virginia State Convention of Colored People held in Lynchburg (Seeking Records)
Regional
1843 Mid-Atlantic Regional Temperance Convention of Colored Citizens held in Salem NJ
1850 Fugitive Slave Law Convention held in Cazenovia NY
1859 New England Regional Convention of Colored Citizens held in Boston MA
1865 New England Regional Convention of Colored People held in Boston MA
1871 Southern Regional Convention of Colored Men held in Columbia SC
1872 New England Regional Convention held in Boston MA (Seeking Records)
1884 Colored Men's Inter-State Conference held in Pittsburgh
Undetermined State
1876 Charleston City Meeting of Colored Citizens (Seeking records)