20 Facts About Reby Cary

Reby Cary was the first black school board member in Fort Worth and served in the Texas House of Representatives from 1979 to 1985.

Reby Cary was the author of numerous books about the history of African Americans in North Texas.

Reby Cary was born September 9,1920, in Fort Worth, Texas.

When Reby Cary was drafted into military service in 1942, he had completed coursework toward a master's degree at Prairie View.

Reby Cary received his draft notice in 1942 and enlisted in the United States Coast Guard.

Reby Cary was one of the first African Americans to graduate from the Coast Guard's radioman school in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Reby Cary was assigned to the USS Cambria and served in the Pacific Theater of World War II, including the invasions of Saipan and Okinawa.

Reby Cary completed his master's degree in history and political science at Prairie View after his discharge and later undertook postgraduate coursework at North Texas State University and Texas Christian University.

Reby Cary held the position of personnel director there until he returned to graduate school in 1948.

Reby Cary taught history at Fort Worth's Dunbar High School until 1967, when he became the first black instructor at Tarrant County Junior College.

In 1974, Reby Cary launched his political career as the first black school board member elected to the Fort Worth ISD school board.

Reby Cary then served three terms in the Texas House of Representatives, where he was a member of the county affairs, energy, rules and resolutions, budget and oversight, and government organization committees.

Reby Cary switched to the Republican Party, citing the white-dominated Democratic Party's poor history with slavery and civil rights.

Reby Cary cited local African-American banker and Republican politician William Madison McDonald as a major influence.

Reby Cary held leadership positions in the Texas Council of Black Republicans and founded the Frederick Douglass Republicans of Tarrant County in 1985 after his final term in the Texas House.

Reby Cary married Nadine Lois Spencer on May 19,1945, before the end of World War II.

Reby Cary held positions in numerous organizations, including Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, the Youth Services Bureau of Tarrant County, the Fort Worth Minority Leaders and Citizens' Council, Boy Scouts of America, United Way of Tarrant County, Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce, Tax Appraisal Review Board of Tarrant County, and Trinity Metro.

Reby Cary was awarded the Fort Worth Black Leadership Award in 1976 and the Congressional Veterans Commendation in 2005.

Reby Cary died on December 7,2018, in Fort Worth, Texas.

Reby Cary is the author of several books about the history of African Americans in Fort Worth and in the military:.