Josiah Tattnall (politician)

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This article is about the former U.S. Senator and Governor of Georgia. For his son, the United States Naval officer, see Josiah Tattnall III.

Josiah Tattnall
United States Senator
from Georgia
In office
February 20, 1796 – March 3, 1799
Preceded byGeorge Walton
Succeeded byAbraham Baldwin
25th Governor of Georgia
In office
November 7, 1801 – November 4, 1802
Preceded byDavid Emanuel
Succeeded byJohn Milledge
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives
In office
1795-1796
Personal details
Bornc. 1762
Savannah, Georgia Province
Died (aged 41)[1]
Nassau, British West Indies
Political partyDemocratic-Republican
RelativesHarriet Tattnall (wife)
Josiah Tattnall Sr. (father)
Josiah Tattnall III (son)
Signature

Josiah Tattnall (c. 1762 – June 6, 1803)

Nassau, New Providence.[5]

Early life

Tattnall was born in 1762, to

colonial Savannah, Georgia. His father had inherited the plantation upon his marriage into the Mullryne family — its 1762 founder being Colonel John Mullryne.[2][3]

Mullryne, who also built the third Tybee Lighthouse in 1773, established a small family graveyard on the grounds, which eventually formed the nucleus of the present-day Bonaventure Cemetery. Bonaventure was one of the largest structures in the colony of Georgia.[6]

Tattnall and his family left Georgia at the outbreak of the

Eton School. Although firm in supporting the British crown, he was unwilling to take up arms against the colonies and refused an appointment to the British navy.[7]

Revolutionary War

Around 1782, the Tattnall family returned to Georgia. Josiah Tattnall joined the Continental Army under General Anthony Wayne, helping remove Savannah from British rule. After the war, Tattnall bought back a portion of Bonaventure from John Habersham and continued his interest in the military. He commanded the Georgia militia in 1787 and led troops against the Creek Indians in 1788 and 1793. He was captain of the Chatham Artillery, the oldest militia unit in Georgia, and later colonel of an infantry regiment. President George Washington nominated him for marshal of Georgia in 1794.[8] He was promoted to brigadier general shortly before his election as governor in 1801.

Political life

Tattnall served his state as a member of the

U.S. senator
to return to the Georgia General Assembly, where he and Tattnall led the campaign against the sale of the Yazoo lands. After the Rescinding Act of 1796 was passed, Tattnall was elected by the General Assembly to take Jackson's Senate seat, where he served from 1796 to 1799.

After serving in the U.S. Senate, Tattnall returned to Georgia and to his beloved Bonaventure. He was elected

governor, but only served for one year. During his administration, the University of Georgia (formerly Franklin College) moved to its present campus in Athens, and the Hawkins Line was run by Benjamin Hawkins, establishing Georgia's northern border with the Cherokee Nation. Tattnall wrote a letter to President Thomas Jefferson in 1802, seeking guidance on the situation.[11] The Western border with the Creeks was yet to be solidified, as evidenced by a letter from the Justices of the Inferior Court and Justices of the Peace for Camden County, Georgia, on June 12, 1802.[12]
They wrote on behalf of the inhabitants of the county regarding the recent removal of U.S. troops from stations in the area. They note that Camden County is a frontier county that is exposed not only to attacks from the sea, and from Spanish settlements to the south, but also to attacks by neighboring Indians, and they express concern that the area is no longer defended against the Indians.

Death and legacy

Tattnall's son, Josiah, in the early 1800s

Tattnall was married to Harriet Fenwick, originally from Charleston, South Carolina. The couple had several children, but only three lived to adulthood. Their son, the third

U.S. Navy officer for more than fifty years and a navy officer for the Confederate Navy during the Civil War
.

Tattnall is buried in the Tattnall family plot (section E, lot 1),[13] alongside his wife, who preceded him in death by a few months,[1] at Bonaventure Cemetery.

Georgia's Tattnall County was named for him,[14] as was Savannah's Tattnall Street.[15]

References

Specific
  1. ^ a b Georgia's Landmarks, Memorials and Legends, Lucian Lamar Knight (The Byrd Printing Company, 1914)
  2. ^
    ISBN 0-8108-5036-2
    .
  3. ^
    ISBN 978-0-691-13773-5
    .
  4. ^ Smith, p. 343.
  5. ^ a b Smith, p. 344.
  6. ISBN 9780820335674
    .
  7. ^ Jones, Charles C. (1878). The life and services of Commodore Josiah Tattnall (PDF). Savannah: Morning News Steam Printing House. p. 2.
  8. ^ Washington, George. "From George Washington to the United States Senate, 5 March 1794". Founders Online. National Archives. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  9. ^ Fair, John D. (2015). "Governor David B. Mitchell and the "Black Birds" Slave Smuggling Scandal". Georgia Historical Quarterly. 99 (4).
  10. ISBN 0820304271
    .
  11. ^ Tattnall, Josiah. "To Thomas Jefferson from Josiah Tattnall Jr., 20 July 1802". Founders Online. National Archives. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  12. ^ King, Thomas. "[Letter] 1802 June 12, St. Mary's, [Georgia to] Josiah Tattnall, Governor [of Georgia], Savannah / Tho[ma]s King . . . [et al.]". Southeastern Native American Documents, 1730-1842. Telamon Cuyler, Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, The University of Georgia Libraries, presented in the Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  13. ^ Bonaventure Section E - SavannahGA.gov.
  14. ISBN 0-915430-00-2
    .
  15. ^ Cope, Tony (2016). It's Not That Lincoln. The Abercorn Press.
General
  • Smith, Gordon Burns, History of the Georgia Militia, 1783-1861, Volume One, Campaigns and Generals, Milledgeville: Boyd Publishing, 2000. ASIN:B003L1PRKI.

External links

Brown, Russell K. "Josiah Tattnall (ca. 1764-1803)". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/government-politics/josiah-tattnall-ca-1764-1803.

U.S. Senate
Preceded by
James Gunn
 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Governor of Georgia
1801–1802 		Succeeded by
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