Willis McGlascoe Carter (September 3, 1852 – March 23, 1902) was an African-American educator, newspaper editor, and civil rights activist in Virginia. Born into slavery in Albemarle County, he became principal of the West End School in Staunton, edited the African American weekly newspaper the Staunton Tribune, and was a leading figure in Black Republican politics in western Virginia during the late nineteenth century. He helped organize opposition to the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1901–02, which disenfranchised most African American voters in the state. By the end of his life he was described by the Washington Bee as "one of the best known citizens of Virginia."
References
Further reading Heinrich, Robert, and Deborah Harding. From Slave to Statesman: The Life of Educator, Editor, and Civil Rights Activist Willis M. Carter of Virginia. Foreword by Henry Louis Gates Jr. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2016. . Rothera, Evan. Review of From Slave to Statesman by Heinrich and Harding. H-Florida, H-Net Reviews, October 2016. Carter, Willis M. "A Sketch of My Life and Our Family Record." Manuscript, ca. 1890s. Willis M. Carter Collection, Accession 51546, Library of Virginia, Richmond.
External links "Willis M. Carter (1852–1902)" in Encyclopedia Virginia "Willis McGlascoe Carter" in the Dictionary of Virginia Biography Guide to the Willis M. Carter Collection, Library of Virginia "Willis M. Carter Journal and Research Collection Donated to the Library of Virginia", The UncommonWealth Willis M. Carter Project, Hutchins Center, Harvard University From Slave to Statesman at Louisiana State University Press