Chatham in Pittsylvania County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Ex Parte Virginia

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

1. Ex Parte Virginia Marker

Inscription. Here in March 1879, a federal marshal arrested James Coles, Pittsylvania County judge, on charges that he had violated the Civil Rights Act of 1875 by refusing to seat Black men on juries. Coles and the Commonwealth of Virginia petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for his release, arguing that Congress had no authority to regulate state juries. Denying the petition, the court ruled in Ex Parte Virginia (1880) that the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution empowered Congress to enforce the right of Black citizens to serve on juries. The ruling, though often disregarded in subsequent decades, demonstrated the broad promise of the 14th amendment to protect the civil rights of all Americans.

Erected 2021 by Virginia Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number L-15.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Law Enforcement. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical month for this entry is March 1879.

Location. 36° 49.582′ N, 79° 23.901′ W. Marker is in Chatham, Virginia, in Pittsylvania County. Marker is at the intersection of Main Street (Business U.S. 21) and Court Place, on the right

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when traveling north on Main Street. The marker is located near the sidewalk, directly in front of the Pittsylvania County Courthouse. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Main Street, Chatham VA 24531, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Pittsylvania Court House (here, next to this marker); Pittsylvania County Confederate Monument (within shouting distance of this marker); Bilhartz, Hall & Co. (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Hargrave Military Academy (approx. 0.3 miles away); Rawley White Martin Residence (approx. half a mile away); Peytonsburg (approx. one mile away); Markham (approx. one mile away); Claude A. Swanson (approx. 1.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chatham.

Also see . . .
1. Ex Parte Virginia, 100 U.S. 339 (1879) (supreme.justia.com). Excerpt:

A judge of a county court in Virginia, charged by the law of that State with the selection of jurors to serve for the year 1878 in the circuit and county courts of his county, was, in the District Court of the United States for the Western District of Virginia, indicted for excluding and failing to select as grand jurors and petit jurors certain citizens of his county of African race and black color, who, possessing all other qualifications prescribed
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

2. Ex Parte Virginia Marker
Looking north; Main Street is in the background.
by law, were excluded from the jury lists made out by him as such officer, on account of their race, color, and previous condition of servitude, and for no other reason...

(Submitted on May 14, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. Ex Parte Virginia (1879) (National Park Service). Excerpt:

In 1878, Pittsylvania County judge J.D. Coles was in charge of selecting the pool of possible jurors for the year. Not a single man selected was a man of color. Coles was arrested for violating the Civil Rights Act of 1875. This federal law prohibited the exclusion of any citizen from jury duty because of his race. Coles challenged his arrest in the courts.
The Issue: Did Congress have the authority to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1875?
The Ruling: Yes. The Fourteenth Amendment added several new rights to the Constitution. One of these rights was equal protection before the law, regardless of one’s race.

(Submitted on May 14, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

3. Ex Parte Virginia (encyclopediavirginia.org). Excerpt:

In Ex Parte Virginia, decided on March 1, 1880, the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed congressional authority to enforce African Americans’ rights to serve on juries in state
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

3. Ex Parte Virginia Marker
Looking southeast from Main Street; the Pittsylvania County Courthouse front entrance is in the background.
courts. Ex Parte Virginia was handed down on the same day as two other important decisions: Strauder v. West Virginia, which declared that states could not limit jury service to white men, and Virginia v. Rives, which prohibited federal courts from claiming jurisdiction over a state case when the state court excluded African Americans from the jury.

(Submitted on May 14, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

4. Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution (Wikipedia). Excerpt:

The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. Usually considered one of the most consequential amendments, it addresses citizenship rights and equal protection under the law and was proposed in response to issues related to formerly enslaved Americans following the American Civil War.

(Submitted on May 25, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Pittsylvania County Courthouse (<i>northwest elevation</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

4. Pittsylvania County Courthouse (northwest elevation)

The marker is on the left side – near the street sign.

Pittsylvania County Courthouse (<i>west/front elevation</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

5. Pittsylvania County Courthouse (west/front elevation)

The marker is on the right side of the staircase.

Credits. This page was last revised on May 25, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 13, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 74 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on May 14, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.