John H. Murphy, Sr.
| John H. Murphy, Sr. | |
|---|---|
| Born |
December 25, 1840 Baltimore, Maryland |
| Died | April 5, 1922 (aged 81) |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Publisher |
| Known for | "The Afro-American" (Baltimore) |
John Henry Murphy, Sr. (25 December 1840 – 5 April 1922) was an African-American newspaper publisher based in Baltimore, Maryland. Born into slavery, he is best known as the founder of the Baltimore Afro-American (also known colloquially/for short as The AFRO), published by the AFRO-American Newspaper Company of Baltimore, Inc. This newspaper is one of the oldest operating black family-owned newspapers in the U.S.A.
John Henry Murphy was born into slavery in Baltimore, Maryland on Christmas Day 1840. His parents were Benjamin Murphy III, who was a white washer, and his wife Susan Colby (or Coby). He is believed to have been enslaved until age 24, when he mustered into the newly organized United States Colored Troops, 30th Infantry Regiment forming in Camp Stanton, Maryland in February 1864. He eventually served as a non-commissioned officer, reaching the rank of sergeant. (Only whites were allowed to be commissioned officers at the time.)
Little is known about young Murphy before his service in the American Civil War. He was among the more than 8,000 Black Marylanders and other states' residents who mustered into various Black regiments throughout the State of Maryland, after 1863 and emancipation, when the Federal Government decided to accept black recruits in the Army. President Abraham Lincoln announced the "Emancipation Proclamation" in September 1862, giving freedom to all slaves still held within then rebelling Confederate States, and taking effect on New Year's Day, January 1, 1863. Afterward, the U.S. War Department and state militia officials actively recruited freedmen, free men of color, and fugitive slaves into the Union Army in the U.S.C.T., to serve along with the previous recruited units of various Northern states, such as the famous 54th Massachusetts Regiment.
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