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Lazarus Powell
Lazarus Whitehead Powell (October 6, 1812 – July 3, 1867) was an American politician who was the 19th governor of Kentucky, serving from 1851 to 1855. He served as a U.S. Senator from Kentucky from 1859 to 1865.
The reforms enacted during Powell's term as governor gave Kentucky one of the top educational systems in the antebellum South. He also improved Kentucky's transportation system and vetoed legislation that he felt would have created an overabundance of banks in the Commonwealth. Powell's election as governor marked the end of Whig dominance in Kentucky. Powell's predecessor, John J. Crittenden, was the last governor elected from the party of the Commonwealth's favorite son, Henry Clay.
Following his term as governor, Powell was elected to the U.S. Senate. Before he could assume office, President James Buchanan dispatched Powell and Major Benjamin McCulloch to Utah to ease tensions with Brigham Young and the Mormons. Powell assumed his Senate seat on his return from Utah, just prior to the election of Abraham Lincoln as president. Powell became an outspoken critic of Lincoln's administration, so much so that the Kentucky General Assembly asked for his resignation and some of his fellow senators tried to have him expelled from the body, though both groups later renounced their actions. He was also a slave owner. Powell died at his home near Henderson, Kentucky shortly following a failed bid to return to the Senate in 1867.
Powell was born on October 6, 1812, near Henderson, Kentucky, the third son of Lazarus and Ann McMahon[a] Powell. His paternal grandparents had migrated from Banbridge, Ulster in 1771 He attended the common schools of Henderson, and was tutored by George Gayle. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Saint Joseph College in Bardstown, Kentucky in 1833, and began studying law under John Rowan. He then enrolled in the Transylvania University School of Law, studying under Justice George Robertson and Judge Daniel Mayes. He was admitted to the bar in 1835, and partnered with Archibald Dixon to start a law practice in Henderson. The two remained partners until 1839.
On November 8, 1837, Powell married Harriet Ann Jennings. The couple had three sons[b] before Jennings died on July 30, 1846.
A Democrat in a Whig district, Powell's political career began with an 1836 bid for a seat in the Kentucky House of Representatives. He campaigned vigorously while his opponent, John G. Holloway, relied largely on his party affiliation to carry the election. This proved a critical misstep for Holloway, as Powell secured the surprise victory. Holloway apparently learned from his mistake. Upon the completion of Powell's term in 1838, Holloway challenged Powell again, and defeated him by a considerable majority. Six year later, Powell was chosen as a presidential elector on the Democratic ticket, supporting James K. Polk.
In 1848, Kentucky Democrats nominated Linn Boyd for governor, but Boyd declined the nomination. Powell was chosen to replace Boyd on the ticket, largely due to the influence of James Guthrie. The Whig party nominated Senator John J. Crittenden, and the race was complicated by former Vice President Richard Mentor Johnson's announcement that he would run as an independent Democratic candidate. Knowing the Democrats' chances were dimmed by having two candidates in the race, Powell arranged a meeting with Johnson, following which the latter withdrew his candidacy and pledged his support to Powell. Nevertheless, Crittenden won the election.
In the gubernatorial election of 1851, Powell was once again the Democratic Party nominee. The Whigs nominated Powell's friend and law partner, Archibald Dixon. Powell and Dixon traveled the state together, eating at the same taverns, speaking from the same platforms, and generally showing cordiality and friendliness that was rare in Kentucky politics in those days. Powell's margin of victory in the general election was a thin 850 votes, while Whig candidate John P. Thompson defeated the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, Robert Wickliffe, by several thousand votes. A third candidate for governor, abolitionist Cassius M. Clay, received 3,621 votes. Powell was the first Democrat elected to the office in almost twenty years. (John L. Helm had ascended to the governorship on Crittenden's resignation.)
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Lazarus Powell
Lazarus Whitehead Powell (October 6, 1812 – July 3, 1867) was an American politician who was the 19th governor of Kentucky, serving from 1851 to 1855. He served as a U.S. Senator from Kentucky from 1859 to 1865.
The reforms enacted during Powell's term as governor gave Kentucky one of the top educational systems in the antebellum South. He also improved Kentucky's transportation system and vetoed legislation that he felt would have created an overabundance of banks in the Commonwealth. Powell's election as governor marked the end of Whig dominance in Kentucky. Powell's predecessor, John J. Crittenden, was the last governor elected from the party of the Commonwealth's favorite son, Henry Clay.
Following his term as governor, Powell was elected to the U.S. Senate. Before he could assume office, President James Buchanan dispatched Powell and Major Benjamin McCulloch to Utah to ease tensions with Brigham Young and the Mormons. Powell assumed his Senate seat on his return from Utah, just prior to the election of Abraham Lincoln as president. Powell became an outspoken critic of Lincoln's administration, so much so that the Kentucky General Assembly asked for his resignation and some of his fellow senators tried to have him expelled from the body, though both groups later renounced their actions. He was also a slave owner. Powell died at his home near Henderson, Kentucky shortly following a failed bid to return to the Senate in 1867.
Powell was born on October 6, 1812, near Henderson, Kentucky, the third son of Lazarus and Ann McMahon[a] Powell. His paternal grandparents had migrated from Banbridge, Ulster in 1771 He attended the common schools of Henderson, and was tutored by George Gayle. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Saint Joseph College in Bardstown, Kentucky in 1833, and began studying law under John Rowan. He then enrolled in the Transylvania University School of Law, studying under Justice George Robertson and Judge Daniel Mayes. He was admitted to the bar in 1835, and partnered with Archibald Dixon to start a law practice in Henderson. The two remained partners until 1839.
On November 8, 1837, Powell married Harriet Ann Jennings. The couple had three sons[b] before Jennings died on July 30, 1846.
A Democrat in a Whig district, Powell's political career began with an 1836 bid for a seat in the Kentucky House of Representatives. He campaigned vigorously while his opponent, John G. Holloway, relied largely on his party affiliation to carry the election. This proved a critical misstep for Holloway, as Powell secured the surprise victory. Holloway apparently learned from his mistake. Upon the completion of Powell's term in 1838, Holloway challenged Powell again, and defeated him by a considerable majority. Six year later, Powell was chosen as a presidential elector on the Democratic ticket, supporting James K. Polk.
In 1848, Kentucky Democrats nominated Linn Boyd for governor, but Boyd declined the nomination. Powell was chosen to replace Boyd on the ticket, largely due to the influence of James Guthrie. The Whig party nominated Senator John J. Crittenden, and the race was complicated by former Vice President Richard Mentor Johnson's announcement that he would run as an independent Democratic candidate. Knowing the Democrats' chances were dimmed by having two candidates in the race, Powell arranged a meeting with Johnson, following which the latter withdrew his candidacy and pledged his support to Powell. Nevertheless, Crittenden won the election.
In the gubernatorial election of 1851, Powell was once again the Democratic Party nominee. The Whigs nominated Powell's friend and law partner, Archibald Dixon. Powell and Dixon traveled the state together, eating at the same taverns, speaking from the same platforms, and generally showing cordiality and friendliness that was rare in Kentucky politics in those days. Powell's margin of victory in the general election was a thin 850 votes, while Whig candidate John P. Thompson defeated the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, Robert Wickliffe, by several thousand votes. A third candidate for governor, abolitionist Cassius M. Clay, received 3,621 votes. Powell was the first Democrat elected to the office in almost twenty years. (John L. Helm had ascended to the governorship on Crittenden's resignation.)
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