Hill, James, 1837-1903

James Hill served in various Mississippi state offices after the Civil War, most notably as secretary of state from 1874 to 1878. He was the last African American to hold a state level office in Mississippi until the twentieth century.

Born on the plantation of James Hill in Marshall County, Mississippi, in 1837 or 1838, Hill was referred to as a mulatto in nineteenth century terminology, indicating he was likely biracial. Rumored to be the biological son of the plantation owner (whose name he shared), Hill was legally a slave under policies that established a child inherited the labor status of the mother. As he grew, Hill reportedly was taught how to read by the slave owner’s two white daughters, and he subsequently acquired machining skills at railroad shops in Holly Springs. He earned a reputation as a first-class mechanic.

Upon gaining his freedom after the Civil War, Hill’s previous education and technical skills made him a strong candidate for new opportunities for African Americans in Republican Reconstruction. He received an appointment as land registrar of Mississippi in 1867 and a year later was elected to the Mississippi state legislature. During his term as a legislator, he helped elect Hiram Revels to the U.S. Senate—the first African American to serve in that position.

In 1873, African American voters in Mississippi helped elect a series of candidates dedicated to racial equality, including northern-born Republican Adelbert Ames as Mississippi governor and Black attorney Alexander K. Davis as lieutenant governor. Hill was elected Mississippi’s secretary of state. Democrats in Mississippi almost immediately conducted a campaign of violence and intimidation against Republican and Black voters, sweeping several subsequent elections and stacking the Mississippi legislature with white supremacist representatives by 1875. The conservative Democrats in office tried clear state Republicans from top state positions, holding impeachment proceedings against Ames and Davis. Both men were removed from office in early 1876, but Hill retained his seat as secretary of state, and completed his term in 1878.

He remained in public service, serving as district internal revenue collector and then postmaster in Vicksburg, appointments given by the president. Following these assignments, Hill served as president of the Mississippi Cotton Manufacturing Company in Jackson. He received one more appointment, in the United States General Land Office in Jackson in 1900. Three years later, in February 1903, he started the Mississippi State Register, a weekly newspaper that advocated racial harmony. Unfortunately, he died of heart failure less than six months later. Hill never married or had children. He is buried in Mount Olive Cemetery in Jackson, Mississippi. (Wikipedia; Christina Hudson, “James Hill (1837?-1903),” Black Past)