Affidavit and Ballot of Jeff Williams
11/2/1872
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In this affidavit, Jeff Williams swears that he was wrongfully prevented from registering to vote in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana, because the supervisor registered all the White men who were present first, then told Williams that he had no more blanks. Also attached is the Republican ballot for the 1872 Presidential Election for the State of Louisiana.
Williams was one of many who were denied the right to vote in Louisiana, the majority of whom were Black residents of the parishes. This was in violation of the Enforcement Act of 1870, also known as the Civil Rights Act of 1870 (an act of Congress signed into law by the President on May 31, 1870), that provided for the enforcement of the rights of citizens to vote in several states. An excerpt from the Act is included with this document.
The Act prohibited state officials from discriminating in voter registration on the basis of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. It established penalties for doing so, and gave Federal courts the power to enforce the act. Court supervision of elections in the southern states was further extended by an act of Congress, approved June 10, 1872, that provided for Federal supervision of voter registration or an election if 10 citizens of the county or parish petitioned to the judge of the U.S. circuit court.
Those prevented from voting gave sworn affidavits to U.S. supervisors of elections in each parish, who sent the affidavits to the chief supervisor of elections, who filed the affidavits with the U.S. circuit court.
Show/Hide TranscriptTranscript
State of Louisiana.
Parish of East Baton Rouge
On the ------day of October, 1872, I Jeff Williams presented myself at the office of T.S. Brady Supervisor of Registration for the Parish of East Baton Rouge located at Court House & Mauch[illegible] in said parish, of the opening and establishment of which, notice had been given by the said officer, and during the legally established office hours, offered and was prepared to perform all acts and to take all oaths by the laws made prerequisite to entitle me to registration as a voter, and was wrongfully prevented from obtaining registration by said Supervisor of Registration, because
On one occasion after the white men all present were registered the supervisor said he had no more blanks, and stopped registering; again I was pushed back white men and presented from gaining admittance.
[NOTE—Here insert cause. If admitted to the office and refused, state so. If the office was closed or the applicant could not obtain admission for any other cause, state so.]
I further state that I am a citizen of the State, and for more than ten days a resident of the said Parish of East Baton Rouge and am in all things lawfully qualified and entitled to vote in said parish.
Signed and Sworn to, in Presence of
H. Washington
Jeff (X his mark) Williams
Philip [illegible]
Subscribed and sworn to, this 2 day of November 1872, before me,
A.W. Harrigan
[illegible] 6 Ward
October -------1872.
I hereby certify that Jeff Williams who has executed the foregoing affidavit presented himself at the office of the Supervisor of Registration for the said Parish of East Baton Rouge as stated in said affidavit, and claimed the right to register, as stated and was wrongfully prevented from obtaining registration, as set forth by him in said affidavit.
And I further certify, that under the laws of this State and the United States he was and is entitled to registration.
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United States Supervisor of Election, for said parish.
State of Louisiana,
Parish of East Baton Rouge,
On the fourth day of November, 1872, I, Jeff Williams a duly qualified voter, in the parish of East Baton Rouge , presented myself at the polling place located at Nesbits Shore in said parish, which had been designated by the supervisor of registration as a poll, and claimed the right to vote upon the foregoing evidence of having offered to do all acts prerequisite to entitle me to register as a voter in said parish, and of having been refused, denied or unable to obtain registration by T.S. Brady, Supervisor of Registration.
I further state that I offered to the Commissioner of Election at said poll for deposit in the ballot box the ballot hereunto attached, and said commissioner refused to receive said ballot, and illegally and wrongfully prevented the ballot attached from being placed in the ballot box and counted, to the denial of my right as a citizen and legal voter. I further demand under the provisions of the Act of Congress, entitled “An Act to enforce the rights of citizens of the United States to vote in the several States of this Union, and for other purposes,” approved May 31, 1870, that my ballot be counted and returned for the several candidates named thereon, as provided by said act.
(Here attach ballot.)
Signatures of two witnesses who are cognizant of the truth of the affidavit.
Jeff (X his mark) Williams
Harrison Washington
Pompey Lee
Subscribed and sworn to, this 11th day of November, 1872, before me,
A.W. Harrington
[illegible] 6 Ward
Parish of East Baton Rouge
November 11th, 1872.
I certify that I was at the polling place above mentioned, on the day of election, November 4, 1872, and that the statement of Jeff Williams above subscribed to, is true in every particular.
Alex Smith
U.S. Supervisor of Election at said Poll.
An act to enforce the rights of Citizens of the United States to vote in the several States of this Union, and for other purposes.
Approved May 31st, 1870.
* * * *
Section 3. That, whenever, by or under the authority of the Constitution or Laws of any States, or the Laws of any Territory, an act is, or shall be require : to be done by any citizen as prerequisite to qualify or entitle him to vote, the other of any such citizen to perform the act required to be done as aforesaid shall, if it fail to be carried into execution by reason of the wrongful act or omission aforesaid of the person or officer, charged with the duty of receiving or permitting such performance of offer to perform, or acting thereon, be deemed and held as a performance in law of such act ; and the person so offering and failing as aforesaid, and being otherwise qualified, shall be entitled to vote in the same manner and to the same extent as if he had in fact performed such act; and any Judge, Inspector, or other officer of election whose duty it is or shall be, to receive, count, certify, register, report, or give effect to the vote of any such citizen, who shall be wrongfully refuse or omit to receive, count, certify, register, report, or give effect to the vote of such citizen, upon the presentation by him of his affidavit, stating such offer and the time and place thereof, and the name of the office or person whose duty it was to act thereon, and that he was wrongfully prevented by such person or officer from performing such act, shall, for any such offense forfeit and pay the sum of $500.00 to the person aggrieved thereby, to be recovered by an action on the case, with full cost and such allowance for counsel fees as the Court shall deem just, and shall also, for every such offense, be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall, on conviction thereof, be fined not less than $500, or be imprisoned not less than one month and not more than one year, or both, at the discretion of the court.
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Section 8. That the District Courts of the United States, within their respective districts, shall have, exclusively of the Courts of the several States, cognizance of all crimes and offenses committed against the provisions of this act, and also concurrently with the Circuit Courts of the United States, of all causes, civil and criminal, arising under this act, except as herein otherwise provided, and the jurisdiction hereby conferred shall be exercised in conformity with the laws and practice governing United States Courts; and all crimes and offenses committed against the provisions of this act may be prosecuted by the indictment of a Grand Jury, or in cases of crimes and offenses not infamous, the prosecution may be either by indictment or information filed by the District Attorney in a court having jurisdiction.
* * * *
Section 23. That whenever any person shall be defeated or deprived of his election to nay office, except elector of President or Vice President. Representative or Delegate in Congress, or member of a State Legislature, by reason of the denial to any citizen, or citizens who and the emoluments thereof, shall not be impaired by such denial; and such person may bring any appropriate suit or proceeding to recover passion of such office, and in cases where it shall appear that the sole question touching the title to such office arises out of the denial of the right to vote to citizens who so offered to vote on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude, such suit or proceedings may be instituted in the Circuit or District Court of the United States of the circuit or district in which such person resides. And said Circuit or District Court, shall have, concurrently, with the State Courts, jurisdiction thereof so far as to determine the rights of the parties to such office by reason of the denial of the right guaranteed by the XVth Article of Amendment of the Constitution of the United States and secured by this act.
Regular National Republican Ticket
For President Gen. U.S. Grant
For Vice President Henry Wilson.
Presidential Electors at Large
M.F. Bonzano, Jules Lanabere, Chas. E. Halstead.
1st District L.G. Roudanez
2nd ‘’ A.K. Johnson
3rd ‘’ Milton Morris
4th ‘’ Joseph Taylor
5th ‘’ John Ray
STATE TICKET.
Election, November 4th, 1872 --
For Governor William Pitt Kellogg.
For Lieutenant Governor C.C. Antoine.
For Auditor of Public Accounts Charles Clinton.
Secretary of State P.G. Deslonde.
Attorney General A.P. Field.
Superintendent of Public Education W.G. Brown.
Congress at Large P.B. S. Pinchback.
For 43rd Congress C.B. Darrall.
For Judge 5th Judicial District. R.T. Posey.
For District Attorney 5th Judicial District. B.E. Chaney.
Parish Ticket—East Baton Rouge.
For Senator 13th Senatorial District, J. Henri Burch.
House of Representatives, C.W. Bryant. Augustus Williams, J.P. Wilson.
Parish Judge. George P. Davis.
Recorder, Alexander Smith.
Sheriff, Gustave LeBlanc.
Clerk of Court. Felix Berhel.
Coroner, Benjamin Morgan.
Police Jurors. Leon Gaste. Wm. Hickman. R.T. Young. O.H. Forman. Andrew Harrigan.
Justice of the Peace,
1st ward—Norman L. Underhill.
2nd ward—Charles Doyle.
3d ward----------------------
4th ward—Robert Monson.
5th ward—A. Rayburn.
6th ward-----------------------
7th ward—R. Young.
8th ward—Charles Spears.
9th ward—Valcour Anderson
10th ward----------------------
11th ward—E.J. Stillman.
12th ward—Alex. Ridley.
Constable,
1st ward—Jules Collins.
2nd ward—Alex. Gilbert.
3rd ward------------------------
4th ward—James Hall.
5th ward—Paris Triplett.
6th ward------------------------
7th ward—Philip Barrow.
8th ward—Wm. Spears.
9th ward—Mourton Mitchell.
10th ward-----------------------
11th ward—Thos. Montgomery.
12th ward—Chas. Newman.This primary source comes from the Records of District Courts of the United States.
Full Citation: Republican Ballot for the 1872 Presidential Election for the State of Louisiana; 11/2/1872; Affidavits of Rejected Voters, 1872 - 1886; Records of District Courts of the United States, Record Group 21; National Archives at Fort Worth, Fort Worth, TX. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/jeff-williams-affidavit, March 29, 2024]