Another nondescript house that had an interesting occupant.

Rep. Richard H. Cain, minister, abolitionist and African-American representative from South Carolina during the Reconstruction Period after the Civil War, lived at 645 South Carolina Ave. SE. He served two terms in Congress,1873-1875 and 1877-1879. His major congressional effort was advocating for passage of the Civil Rights Bill of 1875, and he delivered several well-regarded speeches on the subject, sometimes mocking southern white representatives who insisted that African Americans were incapable of learning.

Cain (1825-1887), born free in Virginia of a Cherokee mother and black father, was raised in Ohio and educated at Wilberforce University and a divinity school in Missouri. After the Civil War Cain moved to Charleston, South Carolina, as superintendent of African Methodist Episcopal (AME) missions, also becoming active in local and state politics, which led to his election to Congress. He died in Washington, D.C., in January 1887.

*****

For more information on these historic sites, go to the restoration society’s web page for the walking tour at http://chrs.org/historic-sites-tour-2020/

Best to view in "Original" because other versions resized by Pbase are decidedly unsharp.

Still going strong, posted earlier: