Edwin Henry Hackley

Edwin Henry Hackley, also commonly known as Edwin H. Hackley (18591940), was the first African-American lawyer admitted to the Colorado Bar Association. Beginning in 1886, he worked as the Denver County Clerk, and then spent almost 14 years as an Abstract Clerk. He practiced law when he could, but after some time he closed his practice because it was not profitable.

He was the editor and publisher of The Statesman, working on the paper from 1892 to until 1901. He wrote the musical comedy play entitled The Ambassador. In 1930, he published Hackley & Harrison's hotel and apartment guide for colored travelers, six years before The Negro Motorist Green Book. He advocated for civil rights and opportunities for advancement of African Americans. The story of his life, A Biography of Edwin Henry Hackley 1859-1940: African-American Attorney and Activist, was published in 2003.

Personal life and education Hackley was born on September 11, 1859, in Romeo, Michigan. He was raised in a black middle-class family in Romeo. After graduating from high school, Hackley attended the University of Michigan in the early 1800s. Sick with tuberculosis, he completed much of his course work remotely to earn his law degree. After she moved to Denver, Azalia trained at a musical conservatory. With high aspirations for her talent, she then was trained in Europe. When she returned to Denver, she was a singer and music instructor. The couple separated after they moved to Philadelphia.

Career Upon receiving his law degree, Hackley was admitted to the bar in Michigan in 1883. He traveled to Colorado and was admitted to the Colorado Bar Association on June 7, 1883, becoming the first African American to become a lawyer in Colorado. (There are some sources that state that Samuel Eddy Cary, who did not come to Denver until 1919, was the first African American to have passed the bar in Colorado.) There are four men that were attorneys earlier than Cary: starting in 1883 with Hackley, followed by Joseph H. Stuart, Thomas Campbell, and George Ross. (An obituary stated that Stuart co-founded The Colorado Statesman.) The women's section of the paper was co-edited by Azalia. He sold the paper in 1898 to G. F. Franklin, but continued on as editor until 1901 when Franklin died. Away from the responsibilities of running a newspaper, he wrote dramatic compositions, and Denver. In 1930, he published Hackley & Harrison's hotel and apartment guide for colored travelers, six years before The Negro Motorist Green Book was published.

Lisa Pertillar Brevard wrote a biography about him, A Biography of Edwin Henry Hackley 1859-1940: African-American Attorney and Activist that was published in 2003.

Hackley was a member of the Colored Odd Fellowship, holding the position of grand master by 1898.