Edward A. Johnson

Edward A. Johnson combined education, law, authorship, and public office in a career devoted to documenting Black history after Reconstruction. History of Negro Soldiers in the Spanish-American War, and Other Items of Interest records the service of Black troops while also addressing political participation, education, and public life. Published in 1899, the book challenged accounts that minimized those soldiers' contributions. Johnson was born enslaved in North Carolina, studied at Atlanta University, and became a school principal before entering law. He wrote A School History of the Negro Race in America, an early textbook intended to give Black students a fuller historical record. After moving to New York, he practised law and became the first African American elected to the state's legislature. History of Negro Soldiers in the Spanish-American War, and Other Items of Interest reflects the same educational purpose, combining recent military history with biographical and civic material for readers whose experiences were often excluded from standard texts.