Fifty-two African-American men served Texas as either state legislators, constitutional convention delegates, or both during the last half of the 19th century, representing the first significant political achievement by African-American citizens of Texas. Most of these black public officials were youthful and in their thirties, working as farmers, ministers, mechanics, blacksmiths, or barbers, and most represented rural counties. In the Legislature, they fought for protection from violence, voting rights, education, frontier defense, the rights of laborers, economics, and railroad matters that benefited all Texans regardless of race. The Constitutional Convention of 1868-1869 included ten African-American delegates out of 90, elected by all male citizens over age 21, including African-Americans, giving African-Americans a voice in Texas state government for the first time. The convention's primary purpose was to frame a new constitution that guaranteed voting rights for African-American citizens over 21, and all ten black delegates were active on committees and presented important resolutions to the constitutional process. Following Reconstruction, the number of black legislators declined along with a decrease in the state's black population. By 1900, blacks in Texas numbered approximately 20 percent of the population, and after the poll tax was adopted in 1902, subsequent measures aimed at disfranchising black voters and office holders ended many of the gains made by these 19th-century black legislators. By 1910, African-Americans were no longer a force in Texas politics.