Charles W. Bush – Against All Odds

Charles W. Bush (Warren County)

State House: 1872-1873

Born: c. 1835 in Vicksburg, MS
Died: April 6, 1875 in Vicksburg, MS

According to his obituary, Bush had been enslaved by Judge Henry Felix Cook before emancipation. A biographical sketch in the New National Era notes that he lived in Boston from about 1866-1868. He opened Freedman’s Bank accounts for himself and his infant son, William Henry, in Vicksburg in 1869. Listed on the 1870 census, occupation “hackman,” in Vicksburg with wife “R” and son William. When his term in the legislature ended, he chose not to run again, and he was appointed an Assistant Commissioner of Immigration and Agriculture in 1874.

“R” died at some point before 1872, and Bush himself passed away on April 6, 1875. His father-in-law, Perry Harrison, filed a probate petition to be made administer of his estate on behalf of William.

Signature of Charles W. Bush from a Freedman's Bank record, 1869 — Signature of Charles W. Bush from a Freedman’s Bank record, 1869

Freedman's Bank record, Apr 13, 1869 — Freedman’s Bank record, Apr 13, 1869

Freedman's Bank record, 1869 — Freedman’s Bank record, July 14, 1869

Weekly Mississippi Pilot, April 24, 1875

This page was last updated on February 4, 2026.