John Willis Menard was born on April 3, 1838. He was a black politician.

From Kalkaska, Ill., he was the first Black elected to the U.S. Congress who was denied his seat by that body. During the Civil War (1861-65) he served as a clerk in the U.S. Department of the Interior. In 1865 he moved to New Orleans, where he became active in the Republican Party, serving as inspector of customs and later as a commissioner of streets. He also published a newspaper, The Free South, later named The Radical Standard. Elected to Congress from Louisiana in 1868 to fill an unfinished term, Menard failed to overcome an election challenge by the loser and Congress refused to seat either man.   more »