Biography · Politics & Public Life
Benjamin Byas
1842–
United States
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Biography
Benjamin Byas (1842 – ) was an African-American lawyer and politician during the Reconstruction era. He was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives representing Orangeburg County from 1870 to 1872, best remembered for being shot by a journalist he was assaulting at the South Carolina State House. Byas was born in Saint Thomas, Dutch Virgin Islands, to George Byas of Maryland and Dode, born in Haiti. He attended Howard University in 1870.
Sources & collection details
Wikipedia contributors — original record ↗
Biography text · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source checked 2026-10-20
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