Robert M. Patton
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Robert M. Patton | |
|---|---|
Governor of Alabama | |
| In office December 13, 1865 – July 24, 1868 | |
| Preceded by | Lewis E. Parsons |
| Succeeded by | William Hugh Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Miller Patton July 10, 1809 Russell County, Virginia |
| Died | February 28, 1885 (aged 75) Florence, Alabama |
| Political party | Whig |
Robert Miller Patton (July 10, 1809 – February 28, 1885) was an American politician who served as the
He was born July 10, 1809, in Russell County, Virginia. His father, William Patton, had been born near Derry in Ireland and emigrated to the United States in 1791; his mother, Martha Lee (née Hays) Patton, was born in Louisa County, Virginia. In 1818 the family moved to Huntsville, Alabama in the Tennessee Valley. Patton attended Green Academy "for a few years" before beginning his professional education in the cotton business. In 1829 he moved to Florence, Alabama. He quickly established himself as a prominent merchant and cotton planter, owning 4,000 acres of land and 300 slaves. He married Jane Locke Braham in 1832. Their marriage produced nine children, of whom seven survived to adulthood.[2][3]
Around his marriage, Patton began a political career that would continue until interrupted by the American Civil War. In 1832 he was elected to the Alabama Legislature as a Whig. He was elected a second time in 1837, serving as a member of the "special legislature" summoned to organize the state's response to the Panic of 1837. He was later elected president of the Alabama Senate on two occasions before the creation of the office of lieutenant governor.[4]
Never strong in Alabama, the Whig Party declined nationally after 1854. While some southern ex-Whigs sought to continue the party under a new name, Patton and others, including notably
After the war, Patton became a delegate to the state constitutional convention summoned under
As governor, Patton cooperated with
After his political career ended, Patton became involved in several commercial ventures to establish and build railroads in the state, notably the
Patton died on February 28, 1885, at his plantation, Sweetwater, near Florence. He was buried in Huntsville.
References
- ^ "Gov. Robert Miller Patton". nga.gov. National Governor's Association. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
- ^ Owen, Thomas McAdory; Owen, Marie Bankhead (1921). History of Alabama and Dictionary of Alabama Biography. S.J. Clarke.
- ^ Rogers, William Warren. "Robert M. Patton (1865-67)". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Auburn University. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
- ^ Rogers, William Warren. "Robert M. Patton (1865-67)". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Auburn University. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
- ^ Owen, Thomas McAdory; Owen, Marie Bankhead (1921). History of Alabama and Dictionary of Alabama Biography. S.J. Clarke.
- ^ Rogers, William Warren. "Robert M. Patton (1865-67)". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Auburn University. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
- ^ Foner, Eric (2014). Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877. New York: HarperPerennial. pp. 195–96.
- ^ Rogers, William Warren. "Robert M. Patton (1865-67)". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Auburn University. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
External links
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