Liberty Billings
Born1823 (1823)
Saco, Maine, USA
Died1877 (aged 5354)
Allegiance United States
Service/branchUnion Army
Commands held1st South Carolina Volunteer
33rd United States Colored Infantry
Battles/warsAmerican Civil War
Billings House in Fernandina Beach, Florida
Billings Great Floridian plaque

Liberty Billings (1823–1877)[1] was an American officer in the Union Army, a Unitarian minister, and a state senator.

Billings was born in Saco, Maine in 1823.[2] He was educated at Thornton Academy[3] and later graduated from Meadville Theological School in 1848.[4]

Billings served as Lieutenant Colonel of the 1st South Carolina Volunteer Infantry which in turn became the 33rd United States Colored Infantry during the American Civil War.[2][1] He was a Republican (Radical Republican) during the Reconstruction Era and served as a state senator in Florida. He was involved in the constitutional convention that developed the 1868 Florida Constitution.[5] Billings has been honored posthumously as a Great Floridian.[6]

He was deemed ineligible to participate in the constitutional convention and was voted out along with others accused of being residents of other states.[7]

The Billings House located in the Fernandina Beach Historic District in Fernandina Beach, Florida.[2]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Kevin M. McCarthy (2007). African American Sites in Florida. Pineapple Press Inc. p. 186. ISBN 978-1-56164-385-1.
  2. 1 2 3 Thamm, Suanne (2019-07-22). "Who was Liberty Billings?". Fernandina Observer. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  3. Thornton Academy (1918). List of Students, 1813-1848, Thornton Academy, Saco, Maine. York Institute.
  4. School, Meadville Theological (1910). General Catalogue of the Meadville Theological School: Meadville, Pennsylvania, 1844-1910. The School. p. 3.
  5. "Liberty Billings, Florida's forgotten radical Republican | fau.digital.flvc.org". fau.digital.flvc.org.
  6. "Liberty Billings- Great Floridians 2000 - Blue Plaques on Waymarking.com". Waymarking.
  7. Society, Florida Historical (January 10, 1972). "Florida Historical Quarterly" via Google Books.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.