Caesar Carpentier Antoine (c. 1836–1921) was a soldier, businessman, editor, and African-American Republican politician in Louisiana during the Reconstruction era.

Biography

He was born as a free man of color in New Orleans. His brother was Felix C. Antoine. During the Civil War, he served as Captain in the 7th Louisiana Regiment Infantry and 10th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery Regiment. After the war, he moved to Shreveport, Louisiana. He was a member of St. Paul's Colored Methodist Episcopal Church and lived in the Allendale neighborhood. He was elected as a state senator for Caddo Parish in 1868, partaking in the Louisiana Constitutional Convention. He served until 1872 when he was elected to serve as Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana, the third man of color to hold that position. He co-founded a newspaper with P. B. S. Pinchback, his immediate predecessor. He became a Worshipful Master in Freemasonry in 1884. Shreveport's Freemason Lodge Number 185 of the Prince Hall Masons is named in his honor. In 1887, he co-founded Comité des Citoyens, which fought the case that became Plessy v. Ferguson, and became its vice-president.

Legacy and honors