Burley, D. W. (ca. 1844–unknown)

D. W. Burley, who represented Robertson, Leon, and Freestone counties in the Twelfth Texas Legislature, was born in Virginia around 1844. He was a free Black before the end of slavery and in 1864 was a captain in a battalion of Black soldiers that defended St. Louis from Confederate raiders. He arrived in Texas in 1865 and later organized a debating society for Blacks. He won election to the Texas House of Representatives in 1870 and was one of twelve Black legislators to serve in that body. Burley was a Radical Republican, but he displeased some other radicals when he supported an effort to subsidize the Southern Pacific Railroad. He served only one term.