The 2010 U.S. Census recorded 2,866 black Americans with Rhone as their last name. That represented 61% of the total of 4,667 entries.
This article tracks their numbers in the census since the Civil War. We also look at historic African American people named Rhone.
We end with a review of early records of black military service in the United States.
After The Civil War
The 1870 census was the first survey after the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation. In 1850 and 1860, only free African Americans were recorded in the census. The many enslaved were omitted.
From 1870 onward, all black Americans were included.
56 people named Rhone were recorded in the 1870 census as black and 10 as mixed.
There was a total of 247 people with the name.
Rhone In The 1900 And 1940 Census
The mixed category was dropped from the census in 1900, so we just need to look at the black numbers this time.
The 1900 census recorded 288 people with the last name Rhone as black within a total of 651 that year.
By the way, the mixed category returned in the 1910 and 1920 censuses. It was dropped again in 1930, but replaced with extra categories for colored and non-white in a way that seems confusing now.
This changed again in 1940 and we can simply focus on one black category.
The 1940 census recorded 806 people named Rhone as black within a total of 1,549.
Historic Black Figures With The Rhone Surname
Here are some notable African Americans in history with Rhone as their last name.
Charlotte Rhone
- Born: 1874
- From: New Bern, North Carolina
- Died: 1963
Charlotte Rhone wanted to become a nurse, but North Carolina’s schools of nursing did not accept African Americans in the 1890s. She attended Freedmen’s School of Nursing in D.C. from 1898 to 1901 and graduated with a nursing degree.
Charlotte worked as a private duty nurse (in the home) in New Bern and gained an impressive reputation amongst the black community. When a fire swept through the black district of New Bern in 1922, the city hired her to help the displaced.
Rhone was a key driver in building a hospital, a hotel, and library services for the black community. Her name is on several buildings in the town.
Liz Rhone Byrd
- Born: 1926
- From: Cheyenne, Wyoming
- Died: 2015
Liz Rhone met her husband James Byrd at the Fort Warren military base in Cheyenne. When she graduated as a teacher in 1949, she taught children at the base for ten years. When the Laramie County school district hired her in 1959, she was the first full-time qualified black teacher in Wyoming.
Liz was elected to the Wyoming House Of Representatives in 1981. She became the first black senator in the state in 1989. She was the primary sponsor of Martin Luther King holiday bill in the state. She was also active in promoting child car-seat laws.
James Byrd served in World War II in France. He married Liz in 1947 and joined the Cheyenne police department the following year. When he was later appointed chief of police in Cheyenne, he was the first African American to hold this position in Wyoming.
Rhone In Black Military Records
Military records are a rich resource of information for family history research. Here are examples of the Rhone surname from military service.
Buffalo Soldiers
Five regiments for black soldiers were formed during the Civil War. They were known as the Buffalo Soldiers.
Their records are part of the national archive of military monthly returns. The information includes the year and place of birth, where they enlisted, their occupation, and their height.
One of the earliest military entries for Rhone was in March 1885. John Rhone was a Private in the U.S. Tenth Cavalry. He was stationed in March 1885 at Fort Davis.
One of the later entries was in June 1908. Edward Rhone was a Private in the U.S. Tenth Cavalry.
If you are researching military ancestors, there is a free index of these records on Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org.
You have to create an account on either website, but you do not need to pay for the Buffalo Soldiers archive.