# @oberlincollege on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DF0f2q9s3AI
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/26766987-oberlincollege-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/e9fc334caf.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-02-08T17:30:33.000+00:00

## Caption

In honor of Black History Month, we want to share a little bit of the story of Oberlin’s first Black graduate, George B. Vashon. A pioneer in civil rights and higher education, Vashon graduated in 1844. During his time at Oberlin, he distinguished himself in his studies and organizing and was called "one of the best minds in the class” by abolitionist James A. Thome. He formed the “Committee in behalf of Colored Students,” which was likely the first college organization for African Americans in U.S. history. This fact speaks to the strength of the Black organizing at Oberlin and foregrounds the role that Black abolitionists would play in later years, exemplified in such events including the Oberlin Wellington Rescue.

After his graduation, he became the first Black lawyer in the state of New York. Soon after, he moved to Haiti where he taught ancient languages at various local schools in Port-au-Prince, amongst other endeavors.

Upon arriving back in America, George settled in Syracuse, New York, at that time a hotbed of abolitionist activity, and started practicing law. He later used his legal skills at the Freedmen’s Bureau, where he served as a legal representative for formerly enslaved men as they had their claims heard in both the Supreme Court and federal court in Washington, D.C. In the final chapter of his life, he took a job as a professor of belles lettres at New York Central College—making him one of the nation’s first Black professors. Later, he became president of Avery College in downtown Pittsburgh. 

If you want to learn more about the history of George B. Vashon, see the link in our bio, or go visit the plaque and tree planted in his honor in Tappan Square.

✏️: Walter Thomas-Patterson ’25
🎨: @obrienillustration

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## Credits

These are the roles credited on Gondola. Credits may be incomplete.
A brand, account owner, or featured person is not necessarily the creator.

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| oberlincollege | @oberlincollege | https://gondola.cc/oberlincollege | University |
| Lucy Curtis | @1ucyyy | https://gondola.cc/1ucyyy | Copywriter |
| Lucy Curtis | @1ucyyy | https://gondola.cc/1ucyyy | Social Media Coordinator |

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