John Francis Wheaton
Encyclopedia
John Francis Wheaton name alternately written as John Frank Wheaton and J. Frank Wheaton, was an American
politician
. He was the first African American
elected to the Minnesota Legislature
, serving in its House of Representatives
. Wheaton was known as a vibrant figure and gifted orator who quickly rose to prominence in Minnesota politics only to quickly leave not long afterward.
in 1866. His father, Jacob Wheaton, was the first African American to vote in the state of Maryland after passage of the Fifteenth Amendment
; a park in Hagerstown is named after him. Due to race relations in the area, he was required to go to the "colored" public elementary school. In order to complete the equivalent of high school
, he attended Storer College
, a historically black college in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
, graduating in 1882. To pay his bills he worked as a shoeshiner
, sold newspapers and did chores for professors. Meanwhile he became an active member of the Republican party, attending the state Republican conventions of 1887, 1889 and 1891. During the 1888 Presidential election
, he was an active speaker on behalf of the eventually successful Republican candidate Benjamin Harrison
at ward meetings. At age 22, Wheaton attended the 1888 Republican National Convention
in Chicago
as an alternate delegate from Maryland; he was the alternate for George Wellington
.
Wheaton married married Ella Chambers on June 6, 1889, and had two children, Layton J. and Frank P. He apprenticed law with a Hagerstown attorney before moving to Washington, D.C.
, where he attended Howard University
. During that time, his connection to U.S Congressman Louis E. McComas
helped him get work as a clerk in the United States Congress
. He worked as a clerk for a few years, but the 1892 Presidential election
, resulting in the election of Democract
Grover Cleveland
, caused him to be terminated from his clerk position. At that time he decided to seriously pursue law. He passed the Maryland bar exam
in 1892, but moved to Minnesota soon thereafter; the reasons for his move are unclear.
, becoming its first African American graduate in 1894 and was elected class orator. He worked as a clerk in the state legislature and later as a deputy clerk for the Minneapolis
municipal court system. He later opened a private law practice and became a major part of the local African American community, spearheading efforts to pass civil rights
legislation. He also lobbied for permitting African American soldiers to volunteer for service in the Spanish–American War. At the time of his election to the Legislature, he had already successfully defended a murder suspect.
On November 8, 1898, Wheaton was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives representing District 42. Newspapers of the time called the district "the most aristocratic portion of Minneapolis" in the state house; it included a large chunk of the metropolitan area from the Kenwood neighborhood to modern Eden Prairie
and Excelsior
. He had won the Republican nomination by a large margin, and would go on to win the general election by a significant margin as well in an area where only approximately 100 of the area's over 40,000 residents were African Americans. While in office, he introduced and helped pass an 1899 civil rights statute that broadened existing Minnesota law and granted equal access for all races to a variety of public places and conveyances.
Wheaton twice represented Minnesota at the Republican National Convention. At the 1896 Republican National Convention
, he was the alternate delegate to Charles Alfred Pillsbury
, and lobbied on behalf of eventual nominee William McKinley
to African American delegates from the South
. At the 1900 Republican state convention, he gave an impassioned speech where, as described by the Minneapolis Journal, he "hypnotize[d] the convention with oratory" in arguing for a spot in Minnesota's national convention delegation for an African American. The Journal would report that "Before the delegates had time to pull up the lower jaws they dropped in amazement when they heard him nominate himself [. . .] Before the convention scarce knew what happened, Mr. Wheaton had won the prize." He was selected as the alternate to Knute Nelson
.
Wheaton's attendance as a part of the Minnesota delegation at the 1900 Republican National Convention
would be his last major work for the state of Minnesota. Before the state convention that preceded it, he had taken a job with an insurance company in Chicago. He arrived in New York City
and by 1905 set up his own law office in Manhattan
with James Curtis, another African American attorney who had worked in Minnesota. The law firm was successful. Around the same time, Wheaton switched political parties and became a Democrat. Not long after his arrival, he was asked by Minnesota Governor
John Albert Johnson
to defend a former stenographer being tried for murder; Johnson and Wheaton knew each other from their time in the Minnesota Legislature.
Wheaton rose in the African American community in Harlem. He was a prominent member of the city's Black Caucus
as well as the Black Elks Club, becoming the organization's national president in 1912. He served as an adviser to heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson
, worked as a community organizer with Vaudeville
entertainer Bert Williams
, and served as counsel for Marcus Garvey
's first wife in a publicized and contentious divorce. He unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the New York State Assembly
in 1919; however he was subsequently given a position in the city district attorney's office, serving from January to May 1920.
Wheaton's life came to an abrupt end in early 1922. The previous fall he had stood bail
for an accused murderer, taking on a $10,000 surety bond
. The client disappeared, leaving Wheaton facing financial ruin. On January 15, 1922, after searching the city with the help of friends and colleagues, a despondent Wheaton committed suicide by inhaling gas at his home at 208 West 137th Street; his body was found by his son.
The funeral procession
attracted 20,000 people to the streets to pay respects to Wheaton; and he was buried in Woodland Cemetery in The Bronx
.
caused serious regression in African American political power. Minnesota would not have another African American state legislator until 1973. The news of his death was reported in several Twin Cities
newspapers; the Minneapolis Journal saluted "the spectacular career of J. Frank Wheaton, Negro lawyer."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. He was the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
elected to the Minnesota Legislature
Minnesota Legislature
The Minnesota Legislature is the legislative branch of government in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is a bicameral legislature located at the Minnesota Capitol in Saint Paul and it consists of two houses: the lower Minnesota House of Representatives and the Minnesota Senate...
, serving in its House of Representatives
Minnesota House of Representatives
The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house in the Minnesota State Legislature. There are 134 members elected to two-year terms, twice the number of members in the Minnesota Senate. Each senate district is divided in half and given the suffix A or B...
. Wheaton was known as a vibrant figure and gifted orator who quickly rose to prominence in Minnesota politics only to quickly leave not long afterward.
Early years
Wheaton was born in Hagerstown, MarylandHagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown is a city in northwestern Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Washington County, and, by many definitions, the largest city in a region known as Western Maryland. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the...
in 1866. His father, Jacob Wheaton, was the first African American to vote in the state of Maryland after passage of the Fifteenth Amendment
Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits each government in the United States from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's "race, color, or previous condition of servitude"...
; a park in Hagerstown is named after him. Due to race relations in the area, he was required to go to the "colored" public elementary school. In order to complete the equivalent of high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, he attended Storer College
Storer College
Storer College was a historically black college located in Harpers Ferry in Jefferson County, West Virginia. It operated from 1865 until 1955.-Storer School:...
, a historically black college in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. In many books the town is called "Harper's Ferry" with an apostrophe....
, graduating in 1882. To pay his bills he worked as a shoeshiner
Shoeshiner
Shoeshiner or boot polisher is a profession in which a person polishes shoes with shoe polish. They are often known as shoeshine boys because the job is traditionally that of a male child. In the leather fetish communities, they are often called bootblacks...
, sold newspapers and did chores for professors. Meanwhile he became an active member of the Republican party, attending the state Republican conventions of 1887, 1889 and 1891. During the 1888 Presidential election
United States presidential election, 1888
The 1888 election for President of the United States saw Grover Cleveland of New York, the incumbent president and a Democrat, try to secure a second term against the Republican nominee Benjamin Harrison, a former U.S. Senator from Indiana...
, he was an active speaker on behalf of the eventually successful Republican candidate Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd President of the United States . Harrison, a grandson of President William Henry Harrison, was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there...
at ward meetings. At age 22, Wheaton attended the 1888 Republican National Convention
1888 Republican National Convention
-Synopsis:The 1888 Republican National Convention was a presidential nominating convention held at the Auditorium Building in Chicago, Illinois, on June 19-25, 1888. It resulted in the nomination of Benjamin Harrison, a former senator of Indiana, and Levi P. Morton, a former U.S. representative of...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
as an alternate delegate from Maryland; he was the alternate for George Wellington
George Wellington
George Louis Wellington was a Republican member of the United States Senate, representing the State of Maryland from 1897–1903. He also represented the sixth district of Maryland in the U.S. House of Representatives....
.
Wheaton married married Ella Chambers on June 6, 1889, and had two children, Layton J. and Frank P. He apprenticed law with a Hagerstown attorney before moving to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where he attended Howard University
Howard University
Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
. During that time, his connection to U.S Congressman Louis E. McComas
Louis E. McComas
Louis Emory McComas , a Republican, was a member of the U.S. Congress from the sixth district of Maryland from 1883 to 1891, and a member of the United States Senate from 1899 to 1905, each time representing the State of Maryland. His granddaughter, Katharine Byron, and great-grandson, Goodloe...
helped him get work as a clerk in the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. He worked as a clerk for a few years, but the 1892 Presidential election
United States presidential election, 1892
In the United States presidential election of 1892, former President Grover Cleveland ran for re-election against the incumbent President Benjamin Harrison, who was also running for re-election. Cleveland defeated Harrison, thus becoming the only person in American history to be elected to a...
, resulting in the election of Democract
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Grover Cleveland
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
, caused him to be terminated from his clerk position. At that time he decided to seriously pursue law. He passed the Maryland bar exam
Admission to the bar in the United States
In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...
in 1892, but moved to Minnesota soon thereafter; the reasons for his move are unclear.
Life in Minnesota
Arriving in Minnesota in 1893, he attended the University of Minnesota Law SchoolUniversity of Minnesota Law School
The University of Minnesota Law School, located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, is a professional school of the University of Minnesota. The school offers a Juris Doctor , Masters of Law for Foreign Lawyers, and joint degrees with J.D./M.B.A., J.D./M.P.A, J.D./M.A., J.D./M.S., J.D./Ph.D.,...
, becoming its first African American graduate in 1894 and was elected class orator. He worked as a clerk in the state legislature and later as a deputy clerk for the Minneapolis
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
municipal court system. He later opened a private law practice and became a major part of the local African American community, spearheading efforts to pass civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
legislation. He also lobbied for permitting African American soldiers to volunteer for service in the Spanish–American War. At the time of his election to the Legislature, he had already successfully defended a murder suspect.
On November 8, 1898, Wheaton was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives representing District 42. Newspapers of the time called the district "the most aristocratic portion of Minneapolis" in the state house; it included a large chunk of the metropolitan area from the Kenwood neighborhood to modern Eden Prairie
Eden Prairie, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 54,901 people, 20,457 households, and 14,579 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 21,026 housing units at an average density of 649.2 per square mile...
and Excelsior
Excelsior, Minnesota
Excelsior is a settlement on Lake Minnetonka in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,188 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...
. He had won the Republican nomination by a large margin, and would go on to win the general election by a significant margin as well in an area where only approximately 100 of the area's over 40,000 residents were African Americans. While in office, he introduced and helped pass an 1899 civil rights statute that broadened existing Minnesota law and granted equal access for all races to a variety of public places and conveyances.
Wheaton twice represented Minnesota at the Republican National Convention. At the 1896 Republican National Convention
1896 Republican National Convention
The 1896 National Convention of the Republican Party of the United States was held in a temporary structure south of the St. Louis City Hall in Saint Louis, Missouri, from June 16 to June 18, 1896....
, he was the alternate delegate to Charles Alfred Pillsbury
Charles Alfred Pillsbury
Charles Alfred Pillsbury , was a U.S. flour industrialist and the founder & namesake of the Pillsbury Company....
, and lobbied on behalf of eventual nominee William McKinley
William McKinley
William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
to African American delegates from the South
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
. At the 1900 Republican state convention, he gave an impassioned speech where, as described by the Minneapolis Journal, he "hypnotize
Knute Nelson
Knute Nelson was an Norwegian American politician. A Republican, he served in the Wisconsin Legislature and Minnesota Legislature, in the U.S. House of Representatives, as the 12th Governor of Minnesota, and as a U.S...
.
Later years
| "I am not going to forswear my allegiance to Minneapolis, which I love better than any place on earth, and I will get back here every time I get a change. I got my start here and I owe a great deal to the people of this city, where everyone is accorded 'equal rights' without regard to race, color or previous condition of servitude." |
| — John Francis Wheaton comments on his departure from Minnesota to the Minneapolis Times |
Wheaton's attendance as a part of the Minnesota delegation at the 1900 Republican National Convention
1900 Republican National Convention
The 1900 National Convention of the Republican Party of the United States was held June 19 to June 21 in the Exposition Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Exposition Auditorium was located south of the University of Pennsylvania, and the later Convention Hall was constructed along the...
would be his last major work for the state of Minnesota. Before the state convention that preceded it, he had taken a job with an insurance company in Chicago. He arrived in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and by 1905 set up his own law office in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
with James Curtis, another African American attorney who had worked in Minnesota. The law firm was successful. Around the same time, Wheaton switched political parties and became a Democrat. Not long after his arrival, he was asked by Minnesota Governor
Governor of Minnesota
The Governor of Minnesota is the chief executive of the U.S. state of Minnesota, leading the state's executive branch. Forty different people have been governors of the state, though historically there were also three governors of Minnesota Territory. Alexander Ramsey, the first territorial...
John Albert Johnson
John Albert Johnson
This is an article about the former Minnesota governor. For the former Minnesota legislator and speaker of the house, see John A. Johnson.John Albert Johnson was an American politician. He served in the Minnesota State Senate from January 1897 to January 1901...
to defend a former stenographer being tried for murder; Johnson and Wheaton knew each other from their time in the Minnesota Legislature.
Wheaton rose in the African American community in Harlem. He was a prominent member of the city's Black Caucus
Black Caucus
- In the United States :*Congressional Black Caucus*National Black Caucus of State Legislators*Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc.-Individual States of the United States:*California Legislative Black Caucus*Delaware Black Caucus...
as well as the Black Elks Club, becoming the organization's national president in 1912. He served as an adviser to heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson (boxer)
John Arthur Johnson , nicknamed the “Galveston Giant,” was an American boxer. At the height of the Jim Crow era, Johnson became the first African American world heavyweight boxing champion...
, worked as a community organizer with Vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
entertainer Bert Williams
Bert Williams
Egbert Austin "Bert" Williams was one of the preeminent entertainers of the Vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. He was by far the best-selling black recording artist before 1920...
, and served as counsel for Marcus Garvey
Marcus Garvey
Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jr., ONH was a Jamaican publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator who was a staunch proponent of the Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism movements, to which end he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League...
's first wife in a publicized and contentious divorce. He unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the New York State Assembly
New York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...
in 1919; however he was subsequently given a position in the city district attorney's office, serving from January to May 1920.
Wheaton's life came to an abrupt end in early 1922. The previous fall he had stood bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
for an accused murderer, taking on a $10,000 surety bond
Surety bond
A surety bond is a promise to pay one party a certain amount if a second party fails to meet some obligation, such as fulfilling the terms of a contract...
. The client disappeared, leaving Wheaton facing financial ruin. On January 15, 1922, after searching the city with the help of friends and colleagues, a despondent Wheaton committed suicide by inhaling gas at his home at 208 West 137th Street; his body was found by his son.
The funeral procession
Funeral procession
A funeral procession is a procession, usually in motor vehicles, from a church, synagogue, or mosque to the cemetery. The deceased is usually transported in a hearse, while family and friends follow in their vehicles.- Standard procedure :...
attracted 20,000 people to the streets to pay respects to Wheaton; and he was buried in Woodland Cemetery in The Bronx
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
.
Legacy
A contemporary political biography described Wheaton as one of "The Progressive Men of Minnesota." His political rise ran counter to prevailing national trends. The collapse of Reconstruction and rise in Jim Crow lawsJim Crow laws
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws in the United States enacted between 1876 and 1965. They mandated de jure racial segregation in all public facilities, with a supposedly "separate but equal" status for black Americans...
caused serious regression in African American political power. Minnesota would not have another African American state legislator until 1973. The news of his death was reported in several Twin Cities
Twin cities
Twin cities are a special case of two cities or urban centres which are founded in close geographic proximity and then grow into each other over time...
newspapers; the Minneapolis Journal saluted "the spectacular career of J. Frank Wheaton, Negro lawyer."