The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1909-11-05
Reconstruction in Monroe County,
By +. r. Pickett, Il. ). 1909.
Continued from last issue

867, we find one new member of ;
-he board, r. NJ. Stockton, this !
man was later a very prominent
igure in the affairs Of the county. ,
Mr.. :. A Jonas says: He was a
stalwart Jeffersonian democrat, and .
blunt thorough going citizen. ,
Another prominent citizen Of Mon .
roe county says He was a thorn
in the side of the Republicans. had
a reserve Of curse words which he
was constantly using against them,
and was as bold as a lion. This
same board was reelected for the (
term beginning January, 1863.
After 1869 affairs, national, state,
and local began to assume new
aspect Several important acts
had been passed by the national
government which directly affected
the State. On April 9, 1866, the
first Civil Rights Act was passed
over President Johnson 8 veto. This .
was an act to protect ali persons, /
white or black, without previous /
condition Of slavery or involuntary
srryltude, In the United States, /
or in the Civil rights. and furnish F.
the means Of their vindication In
1867 three reconstruction acts were
passed, one Of which provided for
the calling Of q constitutional con-
ventiOn In each Of the States The
Elective Franchise Act was also
passed. which gave negroes the
right to vote, Governor Ames,
then military governor of Missis-
-ippi called convention which
met i'm January 1868 10 frame
new constitution In the election
of delegates to this convention, the
negro voted for the first time, but
when the constitution was submit
ed to the people it was rejected.
Pres Grant then re-submitted the
constitution and 1t was then accep-
/ ted and put I'm force,
The first board of supervisors Of
I Monroe county under this new con
stitution met on July y, 1869. 1t
was appointed by governor Ames,
/ the previously elected board having
been dropped after the adoption of
the constitution. This new board
was not entirely democratic and it
/ did not have Il single member who
bad belonged TO the preceding
board. The president J +. Meek.
was a Republican sympathizer. the
/ remainder so far rs know, were
/ democrats. Affairs began to take
on "a more gloomy aspect now. The
board became divided; parties
worked against each other; and
the financial interests of the county
were neglected, and worst of all,
uneducated, unprincipled negroes
found a seat on this board (For
the above: see Doc. source of Amer.
/ Hist. PIP. 5OS, 80 514; also article
/ by Mr.. Geo. Leftwich.)
The board which took its place
/ in January 1870 was composed of
/ three white men and two negroes,
/ one Of whom became later its presi-
| dent. The white members of this
board were thoroughly democratic,
and the first president W. w.
/ Troup, was nominated in 1875 by
his party as a candidate for the
State legislature. He was a wealthy
and highly respected citizen. In
the fall of 1871 Elisha Howell was
removed for some unknown cause
/ and was succeeded by Adam Brad
/ ford (col.) Spencer Watkins, col.
resigned and was succeeded by F.
II Little, a republican, of whom we
shall see more in another part of
this paper.
To n reader who knows nothing
| of the actual conditions Of the
county, the actions of the board as
recorded, in reference to public i'm
pr0vement, would seem, at surface
view to look toward the best inter
ests of the people. A great many
contracts were let for the building
/ Of roads. These we find were not
actually for the public good, but
We're grating schemes for the bene-
fit of contractors As long as the
democrats were in control, the
financial interests of the county
were safe. But a few years later
when Republicans, Scalawags, and
negroes had the controlling voice in
the Board, some extravaganza con-
tracts were made for public i'm
| provements.
The board of 1872 still had a
democratic majority. On it were
two interesting and important
| characters, I. r. Caldwell and w.
To-. Thomas. who represented the
white districts east of the river.
| They were highly respected citizens,
the former having been elected in
| 1907 in his county to the lower
| house Of the state legislature.
The presence Of these men. who
had the real interests of the county
at heart, served to check the ex-
travagant measures heretofore
passed by the Board Their COM
mon method of opposition was by
protests, which were sometimes
/ effective, but more often unnoticed.
Il Their first protest was against the
returning of a fine for the selling
of fire arms to a freed man, viola
ton Of the Black Code. " 1t was
/ about this time that a contract was
let for the building of an iron bridge
across the Tom bigbee river one mile
east of Aberdeen. One J. H.
Anderson, a scalawag, was super
intendent of this work, and Mt al
most every meeting of the Board he
was allowed large sums of money
Il which gave strong indications If
/ corruption.