William U. Saunders Explained

William U. Saunders (1835 - September 1, 1883) was a barber, soldier, politician, and lawyer who represented Gadsden County, Florida, in the Florida Legislature during the Reconstruction era.[1]

He was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He served in the United States Colored Infantry from 1863-1866.[2]

He was a delegate from Gadsden County to the 1868 Constitutional Convention of Florida despite having been in the county only a few days in his life, according to one account.[3] He had been a barber in Illinois[4] or Maryland.[5] He was described as an eloquent speaker.[5] In 1948 he was described as a Northern Radical Republican.[6]

He traveled the state rallying Black voters.[7]

Historian T. D. Allman wrote that racist revisionists tried to recast him as mulatto to deny his being a black man.[8]

An African American, he served in the United States Colored Infantry from 1863-1866. Canter Brown Jr. documented him as "mulatto". He represented Gadsden County at the 1868 Florida Constitutional Convention. He described as a "fluent speaker."[9]

He died in Clinton, Kentucky.[9]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Brown, Canter. Florida's Black Public Officials, 1867-1924. July 1, 1998. University of Alabama Press. 9780817309152. Google Books.
  2. Florida's Black Public Officials by Canter Brown Jr. pages 122, 123.
  3. Web site: The Civil War and Reconstruction in Florida. William Watson. Davis. July 1, 1913. Columbia University Press. Google Books.
  4. Political Reconstruction in Florida. Shofner, Jerrell H.. 1966. The Florida Historical Quarterly. 45. 2. 145–170. 30147741.
  5. Web site: Negro History Bulletin. July 1, 1974. Association for the Study of Negro Life and History. Google Books.
  6. Web site: Florida, Land of Change. Kathryn Abbey. Hanna. July 1, 1948. University of North Carolina Press. Google Books.
  7. Book: Randel, William Peirce. Centennial: American Life in 1876. July 1, 1969. Chilton Book Company. Google Books.
  8. Book: Allman, T. D.. Finding Florida: The True History of the Sunshine State. March 5, 2013. Grove/Atlantic, Inc.. Google Books. 262. 9780802120762.
  9. Florida's Black Public Officials, 1867-1924 by Canter Brown Jr. pages 122,123

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