The drafting of the bill was done in early 1870 by Senator Charles Sumner. It was with the assistance of John Mercer Langston, a prominent African-American who established the law department at Howard University. The bill was proposed by Senator Sumner and co-sponsored by Representative Benjamin F. Butler, both Republicans from Massachusetts, in the 41st United States Congress in 1870. The act was eventually passed by the 43rd Congress in February 1875 and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1875.