Henry P. Jacobs (July 8, 1825 - December 14, 1899) was a janitor, preacher, founder of schools, and state legislator in Mississippi. He escaped slavery.
He was born in Alabama. He escaped slavery to Canada and then moved to Michigan before settling in Natchez, Mississippi after the American Civil War.
He founded the school that became Jackson State University. In 2010, Jackson State University president Ronald Mason Jr. proposed merging several Historically Black Colleges and Universities into specialized campuses of a newly formed university called Jacobs State University in honor of Jacobs.
He served with John R. Lynch and O. C. French in the Mississippi House of Representatives from Adams County, Mississippi.
In 2015 a mural was painted in Ypsilanti in his honor.
References
- "HP Jacobs: Ypsilanti's Builder of African-American Worlds". www.ypsireal.com. February 2, 2021.
- "Henry P. Jacobs – Against All Odds". Retrieved 2022-03-25.
- ^ Lynch, Adam. "JSU President Mason Proposes HBCU Merger Into 'Jacobs State'". www.jacksonfreepress.com.
- "Learn About Natchez". Historic Natchez Foundation. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
- "HP Jacobs, runaway slave turned state senator, doctor and university founder, recognized in Ypsilanti". Mark Maynard.
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- 1825 births
- 1899 deaths
- Members of the Mississippi House of Representatives
- 19th-century American educators
- African-American state legislators in Mississippi
- Founders of American schools and colleges
- Politicians from Natchez, Mississippi
- Fugitive American slaves that reached Canada
- Jackson State University people
- 19th-century American slaves
- 19th-century African-American educators
- 19th-century members of the Mississippi Legislature
- 19th-century African-American politicians