Joseph Rainey
| Joseph Hayne Rainey | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina's 1st district |
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In office December 12, 1870 – March 3, 1879 |
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| Preceded by | Benjamin F. Whittemore |
| Succeeded by | John S. Richardson |
| Member of the South Carolina Senate from Georgetown County | |
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In office November 24, 1868 – November 28, 1870 |
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| Preceded by | Richard Dozier |
| Succeeded by | John Francis Beckman |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
June 21, 1832 Georgetown, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Died | August 1, 1887 (aged 55) Georgetown, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Republican |
| Profession | Barber, politician, banker |
Joseph Hayne Rainey (June 21, 1832 – August 1, 1887) was an American politician. He was the first African American to serve in the United States House of Representatives, the second black person to serve in the United States Congress (U.S. Senator Hiram Revels was the first), and the first black presiding officer of the House of Representatives. Born into slavery in South Carolina, he was freed in the 1840s by his father purchasing the freedom of his entire family and himself. Revels and Rainey were both members of the Republican Party.
Joseph Hayne Rainey was born into slavery in 1832 in Georgetown, South Carolina. He and his brother Edward were of mixed race; their mother Grace was of African and French descent, likely descended from slaves brought by refugees from Saint-Domingue during and after the revolution that created Haiti. Their father Edward Rainey, also enslaved, had been allowed by his master to work independently to earn money and developed a successful business as a barber; he paid a portion of his income to his master as required by law. Edward saved a substantial sum; by the 1840s he purchased his freedom and that of his wife and two sons. With education severely limited for black people, as an adult Rainey followed his father by becoming a barber; it was an independent and well-respected trade that enabled him to build a wide network in his community.
In 1859, Rainey went to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There he met and married Susan, a free woman of color from the West Indies, who was also of African-French descent. They returned to South Carolina, where their three children were born: Joseph II, Herbert and Olivia.
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