Oscar James Dunn , Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana . National Archives / 527896
OSCAR DUNN ,
AMERICA ’ S FORGOTTEN FIRST BLACK LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR
By Kim Welsh
A significant political figure in Reconstructionist Louisiana , Oscar James Dunn , rose to prominence after the Civil War , becoming the first black lieutenant governor , serving Louisiana from 1868 to 1871 . After his untimely death in 1871 , Dunn faded into obscurity . Until recently , there were no monuments , statues , or streets named for him in New Orleans . In July 2021 , our City Council honored him by rededicating Washington Artillery Park , the elevated square which overlooks Jackson Square from the Mississippi River Levee , renaming it Oscar Dunn Park for this hero who was born into slavery and became the United States ’ first black lieutenant governor .
Oscar Dunn was born to a slave mother in 1822 . Dunn ’ s mother fell in love with a free man of color and in 1831 , Oscar , his little sister , and his mother were purchased for $ 800 by his new stepfather , James Dunn . In 1832 , James Dunn emancipated his family , officially making them free people of color . Oscar adopted his stepfather ’ s first and last names , becoming Oscar James Dunn . Now free ,
Oscar could attend school , a privilege denied to the state ’ s enslaved population . Despite his academic excellence , at 14 he was apprenticed to a master plasterer .
During the Civil War , Dunn did not serve in an active capacity . Near the end of the fouryear conflict , he opened an employment agency where freedmen were hired out to residents of the New Orleans area . Working with the newly freed laboring class of African Americans , Dunn championed their struggle for freedom and became a strong advocate of land ownership for blacks , education for all children , and equal protection laws . He became secretary of the Advisory Committee of the Freedmen ’ s Saving and Trust Company of New Orleans and organized the People ’ s Bakery to foster economic independence .
Dunn ’ s desire to aid the cause of freedom and universal voters ’ rights would be his stepping stone into politics and elective office . Reconstructionera politics were hostile and often resulted in
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