Philip Joiner (1835-c.1876) was born in Mecklenburg, Virginia, and came to Georgia after being sold in the 1850s. He lived enslaved in Dougherty County prior to the end of the Civil War. Joiner became president of the Union League, a pro-union organization, and was a delegate to the 1867 Georgia Constitutional Convention and an elected representative to the 1868 Georgia Assembly. He represented Dougherty County and lived in Albany, Georgia.

After being expelled from the Assembly, Joiner led a march from Albany, Georgia, to Camilla, Georgia, in protest of the expulsion. Participants in the march were shot at and attacked in Camilla at the Mitchell County Courthouse despite their peaceful intentions when a drunken resident, James Johns, began firing into the bandwagon that accompanied them. A mob began an assault on the marchers, including by the town’s sheriff, who formed a posse to hunt down the freedmen. Joiner was shot in the attack. Joiner testified on the event to the Freedmen’s Bureau as many Black Georgians were killed and wounded in the attack, which is now known as the Camillia Massacre. He also argued that the military had been ineffectual in protecting freedmen and requested that land be set aside in the West for Black settlers. A similar request was made by separatist Georgia Assemblyman Romulus Moore.

In addition to being an assemblyman, Joiner worked as a carpenter and lived in Albany, Georgia, with his wife, Henriette, and their daughters, Mary Jane (5) and Lucy Ann (10), according to the 1870 census. His real estate was valued at $2000, and his occupation was listed as “Representative In Labor Legislator.” His mother, Lucy Parker, also lived with the family.

REFERENCES:

Foner, Eric. Freedom’s Lawmakers. LSU Press, 1996. p 120 

Phillip Joiner https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/185279:8755

Affidavit of Philip Joiner: Albany, Georgia, 1868 Sept. 23 https://dlg.usg.edu/record/dlg_zlcu_cam022?canvas=0&x=1176&y=1619&w=12439

https://dlg.usg.edu/record/dlg_zlcu_cam022?canvas=0&x=1176&y=1619&w=12439

Phillip Joiner, Camilia Race Massacre. Page 176: https://vtext.valdosta.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10428/1130/butler-joshua-w_almost-too-terrible-to-believe_history_thesis_2012.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y 

Lee Formwalt, “Documenting the Origins of African-American Politics in Southwest Georgia,”The Journal of Southwest Georgia History 8 (Fall 1993)