April 9, 1891

Henry Jackson Lewis, who is considered the first black political cartoonist, died in Indianapolis, Indiana. Lewis was born into slavery in Mississippi in 1837 or 1838. He worked as a laborer in Pine Bluff (Jefferson County) in the 1870s, where his talents in drawing became recognized; by 1879, he was selling drawings to Harper’s Weekly. After moving to Little Rock (Pulaski County), where he worked as a janitor for the Arkansas Gazette, he went to Indianapolis. His works were published in the Freeman as well as in national publications. His obituaries referred to him as a genius.