John Lay Thompson
This file appears in: Iowa Bystander
Portrait with following text: Editor John L. Thompson and his Iowa State Bystander covered social events at Fort Des Moines and argued that "Afro American soldiers are the best in the United States so far as sobriety and good behavior... [and] in many other essentials in the makeup of good soldiers."
This file appears in: Iowa Bystander
Iowa Bystander
The Iowa State Bystander was established in Des Moines in 1894 as a four-page weekly to serve as the voice of Iowa’s African American community. Ten prominent African Americans established the Bystander Publishing Company under the motto: “Fear God,…