This park was dedicated in 1993 to the memory of Georgetown native Joseph Hayne Rainey, the first African American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives. Born to slave parents in 1832, Rainey escaped to Bermuda when the War Between the States broke out. After the war, he returned to South Carolina and entered politics. He was a Republican delegate to the state's 1868 constitutional convention and later was elected to the state senate. In 1870, Rainey was nominated to fill the Congressional term of a white Republican who had been force to resign for selling West Point cadet appointments. He was re-elected to four consecutive terms representing the 1st Congressional District. After losing a fifth re-election bid in 1878, he became an internal revenue agent and later unsuccessfully sought to become the first African American clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Rainey retired to Georgetown in 1886 and died a year later. The family home where Rainey was raised still stands at 909 Prince Street and has been named a National Historic Landmark.

Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.

Show me all markers in:  Georgetown, SC  |  Georgetown County  |  29440  |  South Carolina  |  United States of America

Georgetown Steel Corporation
Georgetown's Industrious Past Historical
Kaminski House Museum
24 Pound Naval Gun
Kaminski House Museum
City of Georgetown
Landing of Lafayette
Kaminski House
Robert Stewart House
South Carolina's Third Oldest City Historical

• GPX
• KML
• LOC

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.