For instance, Theophile T. Allain (1846–1917), a Black man born in Louisiana as a slave in West Baton Rouge Parish, was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives but "denied his seat because of voting irregularities." However, voters chose Allain again in the following term, and he served in the House 1872–74, the Senate 1874–80, and the House again 1881–90. Allain helped establish Southern University and was well respected as a local leader, but was once "refused service by a white bartender on a steamboat.”
Dr. Allison Wiltz
