Saturday, February 4, 2012

Thomas Mundy Peterson

Thomas Mundy Peterson 
First Black Voter in the United States
Birth - October 6, 1824
Death - February 4, 1904 
Voted March 31, 1870 

Article is from
The News Tribune 
December 5, 1977 

















Since The News Tribune article was written:

In 1983, Peterson's Medal 
was graciously loaned by Xavier University for three weeks.   
during Perth Amboy's 300th Anniversary Celebration. 


In 1987, A plaque was placed by the staff and students
honoring Thomas Peterson in
No. 1 School where he worked as a custodian.


In October 1989, School No. 1 was officially renamed the
Thomas Mundy Peterson School.


14 comments:

  1. Wonderful story and information I was not aware of. Thanks for posting.

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  2. Thank you for taking the time and effort to post this. I am amazed by the courage Mr. Peterson had to vote during that time.

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    1. Thanks Claire! There are plans for a dig on the site where Mr. Peterson's house once stood. Right now there are insurance issues that have to be resolved.

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  3. Just in time for Black History Month. Thank you for providing our students with this resource.
    -Rachel H. Wintemberg,
    Teacher of visual art, William C. McGinnis School.

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  4. Thank you for granting me permission to use your photographs and link to your blog.

    http://thehelpfulartteacher.blogspot.com/2012/02/black-history-month.html

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  5. As a decendent of Thomas Mundy Peterson I am overjoyed to see him getting his recognition.

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  6. Thank you for your kind words and for visiting our site! Mr. Peterson deserves to be recognized throughout the Nation.

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  7. Frannie, do they still celebrate Thomas Mundy Peterson Day in Perth Amboy?

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  8. I am not sure what the city has done or will do in Perth Amboy. Before I retired from teaching,I always mentioned Mr. Peterson when the classes were learning about the History of Perth Amboy. There is a renewed interest in Mr. Peterson's life and historic vote. Last month, Mr. Gordon Bond gave a talk entitled, "To cast a Freedman's Vote: How a handyman from Perth Amboy made Civil Rights history" at the Perth Amboy Tottenville Ferry Slip Museum. Also there is talk about a dig on the site where Mr. Peterson's house once stood. Is there any information you can provide about Mr. Peterson's life or his family? Thank you!

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  9. If you go to http://www.metuchen-edisonhistsoc.org/8.html Then scroll down to No. 052. Click on the number 52 and it will bring up the paper Mr. Bond wrote on Mr. Peterson.

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  10. Frannie! So glad you wrote this! It really was such a brave move. I'm working on a Black History Month story on him for NBC 4 in New York. Can I use the image of the school that you have in this blog? I can credit to you... please let me know. Melissa.Mack@nbcuni.com
    thank you!

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