This panel begins just after the Civil War with the creation of the Freedmen’s Bureau. Visitors will learn about Mr. Newton Shepard, the first Black person to win an election in Asheville in 1882.
Harper’s Weekly [10]
Established in 1865, the Freedmen’s Bureau aided in integrating African Americans legally and safely into society. The Bureau had a military presence, offered voter registration, certification of marriages, and other acts of citizenships.
Born into slavery in 1841, Newton Shepard became the first Black person to win an election in Asheville in 1882. In 1883, newspapers reported that voters re-elected Shepard to a second 12-month term. Mr. Shepard was reported to have voted to invest in infrastructure and for hotel development. Upon his death in 1924, a notice reported his past service as an Alderman. It would be 86 years before residents elected another Black leader. Ruben Dailey was elected to City Council in 1969. By then, the local paper of record had forgotten about Mr. Shepard. This marker is the first to celebrate Shepard’s achievement.
