Twilight, Alexander Lucius, 1795-1857

Alexander Lucius Twilight; Born September 23, 1795, Bradford, Vermont; Died June 19, 1857 Brownington, Vermont, U.S.; He is the first African-American man known to have earned a bachelor's degree from an American college or university, graduating from Middlebury College in 1823. He was licensed as a Congregational preacher and worked in education and ministry all his career. In 1829 Twilight became principal of the Orleans County Grammar School. There he designed and built Athenian Hall, the first granite public building in the state. In 1836 he was the first African-American elected as a state legislator, serving in the Vermont House of Representatives; he was also the only African-American ever elected to a state legislature before the Civil War. His house and Athenian Hall are included in the Brownington Village Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP); Alexander's father, Ichabod, was born in Boston, July 1765. Ichabod's father was black, his mother, white, possibly an indentured servant. Eventually, Ichabod married Mary, described as 'white' or 'light-skinned,' implying she was of partial African descent. Ichabod and Mary were free and mixed race, of African and English descent. It is unknown if they were born free; they were likely descendants of African slaves and English ancestors. Ichabod was a Revolutionary War veteran from New Hampshire. His parents were both listed in the Corinth town history as "the first negroes to settle in Corinth where they bought property, moving from Bradford on November 28, 1798; In 1826, Twilight married Mercy Ladd Merrill of Unity, New Hampshire. They remained married until his death, and had no children. Mercy Twilight died in 1878;