Bruce, Blanche K(elso)

born March 1, 1841, Prince Edward county, Va., U.S.

died March 17, 1898, Washington, D.C.

U.S. senator from Mississippi during Reconstruction.

Born to a slave mother and a white father, he was educated by his father. He moved to Mississippi, where he became a significant figure in state politics and purchased a plantation. In the U.S. Senate (1875–81), he advocated just treatment of African Americans and Indians and opposed the policy of excluding Chinese immigrants. He later served as register of the U.S. treasury (1881–85, 1895–98), District of Columbia recorder of deeds (1889–95), and trustee of Howard University.

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