THE FREDERICK DOUGLASS REPUBLICANS OF TARRANT COUNTY

The Frederick Douglass Republicans of Tarrant County strive to maximize political participation of African Americans in the Republican Party, as well as others who share our conservative values. Our primary goal is to be an educational resource for economic, social, and political empowerment.

The Frederick Douglass Republicans of Tarrant County was founded by Mr. Reby Cary,

Reby Cary (1920-2018 ) was born and raised in Fort Worth. He grew up in a religious household, the son of Reverend Smith Cary, who founded the Rising Star Baptist Church in Fort Worth. In 1937, Mr. Cary graduated from I. M. Terrell High School, the first black school in Fort Worth. After graduating, he attended Prairie View A&M University where he received a Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science in 1941. 

By 1942, Mr. Cary had completed the requirements for a Master of Science in History and Political Science except for his dissertation due to being drafted that same year. He volunteered to serve in the U.S. Coast Guard and was assigned to the U.S.S. Cambria. He served in Saipan, Japan, and Okinawa Island. Mr. Cary was discharged in 1945 and returned to Texas to finish his Masters at Prairie View A&M University. He furthered his education by taking graduate courses at Texas Christian University and North Texas State University. In addition, Mr. Cary was only the third African American man admitted to the Student Radioman School in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and graduated in 1943.

Mr. Cary served his community in multiple capacities. In education, he taught at many schools in the Fort Worth area, including as a History Instructor and Counselor at Dunbar High School, and as Assistant Professor of History and Associate Dean of Student Life at the University of Texas at Arlington (1969 – 1978), as well as the Director of Minority Affairs (1975 – 1978). In 1974, he was the first African American elected to the Fort Worth School Board.

Mr. Cary served in the Texas State House of Representatives and held leadership positions in the Frederick Douglass Republicans of Tarrant County and the Texas Council of Black Republicans. 

Mr. Cary also held positions in various organizations such as Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Youth Services Bureau of Tarrant County, Fort Worth Minority Leaders and Citizens’ Council, Boy Scouts of America, United Way of Tarrant County, Fort Worth Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Tax Appraisal Review Board of Tarrant County, and the Fort Worth Transportation Authority. In addition to owning his own real estate company, Cary Real Estate, he also found the time to author seven books on African Americans in Texas.  From the City of Fort Worth’s Reby Cary papers.

As the Frederick Douglass Republicans of Tarrant County, we hope to honor Mr. Reba Cary and Frederick Douglass by being an educational resource for economic, social, and political empowerment for all.