Pierre Caliste Landry

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Pierre Caliste Landry (April 19, 1841 – December 22, 1921) was an American born into slavery who became an attorney, minister, mayor, newspaper editor, and state legislator in Louisiana. He was born on the Prevost sugar plantation in Ascension Parish to Marcelite Prevost, an enslaved cook, and Roseman Landry, a white laborer. He was sold at age 13 to the Bringier family and received schooling on the plantation, with tutoring from local ministers. He was raised Catholic but later joined the Methodist Episcopal Church.

After the Civil War, Landry moved to Donaldsonville. In 1868, he was elected mayor, believed to be the first African American elected mayor in the United States. He founded St. Peter's Methodist Episcopal Church and held many public roles, including judge, school superintendent, tax collector, president of the police jury, parish school board member, postmaster, and justice of the peace. He helped organize the Black Republicans in Louisiana and was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives in 1872, where he supported the creation of New Orleans University. He was elected to the Louisiana State Senate in 1874 and served until 1880.

Landry also continued his work in the church, serving as a pastor and rising to district leadership positions. He led churches in Baton Rouge, Shreveport, and New Orleans, and in 1891 was elected Presiding Elder of the South New Orleans District. He married Amanda Grigsby and had twelve children; after her death, he married Florence Simpkins and had two more. His son L. B. Landry became a noted physician and community activist in New Orleans. Pierre Caliste Landry died in 1921, leaving a lasting legacy in faith, education, and public service.