MARYLAND - The first African American to represent the Eastern Shore in the Maryland House of Delegates has passed away according to an obituary released over the weekend.
According to the Anthony E. Ward, Jr. Funeral Home, former State Delegate Rudolph C. Cane passed away on Saturday, January 20th, in Mesa, Arizona. Cane was 89 years old.
In 1999, Cane became the first African American to represent Maryland’s Eastern Shore in the State’s House of Delegates. He served for 15 years representing Dorchester and Wicomico Counties before retiring in 2014. Cane served on several committees during his tenure in the House, including the Environmental Matters Committee and the Joint Committee on the Selection of the State Treasurer. He also served as Deputy Majority Whip in the House from 2001 to 2002.
Cane was born in 1934 in Marion, Maryland and attended Carter G. Woodson High School in Crisfield before serving in the army. He then attended Maryland State College and Coppin State College. From 1978 to 1983, he also served on the Board of Directors for Shore Up, Inc and was a member of the Maryland State Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, 1970-2002.