Historic Vote is Cast in Ottawa, IL

Next year’s presidential election marks 150 years* since the first vote was cast by a black man in Ottawa, Illinois. Gabriel (Gabe) Giger was the first to drop his ballot in the box that morning. He may very well have been the first black voter in the state of Illinois, which seems especially symbolic considering Ottawa was also the first site of the Lincoln Douglas debates.

Whether or not Gabe was aware of the mythic symbolism, he was aware of his right to vote. He read his ballot, made his selections, and went along with his day until he was pursued by men imploring him to return and verify his status. By chance, some prominent attorneys were there and confirmed that Giger had a legitimate right to vote. It was in that moment that W.E. Bowman asked Gabe for a photograph in his studio. Today we have the privilege of be able to see Gabe as he was on the very day he voted.

What do we know of him? Spellings of his name vary in newspaper articles, perhaps because saying it in his Southern Louisiana accent led to confusion. He was born in 1848. Twenty-four years later, he lived on Columbus Street in Ottawa and worked as a laborer. In 1877, The Past and Present of LaSalle County lists him as a white washer, an occupation which is further verified in the census records of 1880. His wife, Emma Giger, is mentioned in the census along with their three Illinois-born daughters (ages 7, 9, and 12). A fourth arrived later. Locals are said to have referred to this quartet as “Gabe’s Angels.” His presence in Ottawa is unknown from 1884 onward. His place of burial is yet unknown. Though it has been long rumored that he arrived before the Civil War on the Underground Railroad; naturally, no form of verification seemingly exists.

Although Gabe’s wife Emma was born in Indiana, her parents originated from North Carolina. By 1910, she ran a boarding house at 58 N Lincoln Avenue in Aurora, Illinois. One daughter named Catherine, along with her husband William Spriggs, altogether lived at the boarding house until Emma’s passing in 1919. Two daughters, three grandchildren, and three great grandchildren are known have survived her.

*This article was originally published in the Autumn 2019 edition of our Newsletter.

This article was made possible thanks to the research of Dave Mumper, and was inspired by a message from Carrie Feldman of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. informing us that they had recently received the image of Giger for their collections.