John Cornelius Asbury
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
In office
1921–1925
Personal details
Born1862 (1862)
West Middletown, Washington County, Pennsylvania
Died1941 (1942)
Resting placeEden Cemetery, Collingdale, Pennsylvania
Political partyRepublican
EducationWashington & Jefferson College
Howard University School of Law

John Cornelius Asbury (1862–1941) was an American lawyer and state legislator in Pennsylvania.[1][2][3] A Republican, he served two terms in the Pennsylvania General Assembly in the 1920s and sponsored civil rights bills.

Isaac E. Asbury was his brother. He studied at Washington and Jefferson College[4] and received a law degree from Howard University in 1885.[1] Early in his career, he served as Commonwealth's Attorney (similar to District Attorney) in Norfolk County, Virginia. from 1887 to 1891.[5] He later moved to Philadelphia where he practiced law.

He was appointed to serve as Assistant City Solicitor in Philadelphia from 1916 to 1920. He served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1921 to 1924.[5] He authored civil rights bills in the Pennsylvania General Assembly and founded Eden Cemetery in Collingdale, Pennsylvania for African Americans.[1][6]

He did not run for a third term in 1924. From 1928 to 1932, he served as the Assistant District Attorney of Philadelphia. Then, he served as the Deputy Auditor General, office of the Pennsylvania Auditor General from 1932 to 1937.[5]

He married Kate E. Allen in 1886. She died in 1898, and he married Ida Elizabeth Bowser in 1901 and they had a son David Bowser Asbury.[4][7]

He supported Downingtown Industrial School and Mercy Hospital.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Smucker, Janneken; Hardy, Charles (2014). "Political Capital". Goin' North. West Chester University.
  2. ↑ "Negro Yearbook". Department of Records and Research, Tuskegee Institute. February 18, 1925 – via Google Books.
  3. ↑ Smith, Eric Ledell. ""Asking for Justice and Fair Play": African American State Legislators and Civil Rights in Early Twentieth-Century Pennsylvania". Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission: 169–203 – via Pennsylvania State University.
  4. 1 2 3 "John Cornelius Asbury". The Journal of Negro History. 26 (4): 550–551. October 1, 1941. doi:10.1086/JNHv26n4p550. S2CID 224842187 – via journals.uchicago.edu (Atypon).
  5. 1 2 3 "John Cornelius Asbury". Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  6. ↑ "*John Cornelius Asbury - Asbury Equal Rights Bill". The Pittsburgh Courier. April 4, 1931. p. 10 – via newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Ida Elizabeth (Bowser) Asbury". University Archives and Records Center. Penn Libraries, University of Pennsylvania.


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