Abram Marshall Scott (March 13, 1785June 12, 1833) was a

National Republican The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a political party in the United States that evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John Qu ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

politician born in

Edgefield County Edgefield County is a County (United States), county located on the western border of the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 25,657. Its county seat and largest municipality is Edge ...

in the

Province of South Carolina Province of South Carolina, originally known as Clarendon Province, was a province of Great Britain that existed in North America from 1712 to 1776. It was one of the five Southern colonies and one of the thirteen American colonies. The monar ...

. He was an early settler of

Wilkinson County, Mississippi Wilkinson County is a County (United States), county located in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of 2020, its population was 8,587. Its county seat is Woodville, Mississippi, Woodville. Bordered by the Mississippi River ...

and was instrumental in founding the town of

Woodville, Mississippi Woodville is a town in and the county seat of Wilkinson County, Mississippi, United States. Its population as of 2020 was 928. History This historic town, one of the oldest in Mississippi, is set among the rolling hills and pastures of Wilkins ...

. He held local political offices before his election to the

Mississippi State Senate The Mississippi Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate, along with the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, convenes at the Mississippi State Capitol ...

Early life

Abram Marshall Scott was born in 1785 in

Edgefield County, South Carolina Edgefield County is a county located on the western border of the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 25,657. Its county seat and largest municipality is Edgefield. The county was established on March 12, 17 ...

. He migrated to

early in his life, where he would serve as a tax collector. During the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, Scott served as a lieutenant in the 1st Mississippi Regiment of Volunteers.

Political career

Scott served as a delegate during Mississippi's Constitutional Convention of 1817, before serving in the

state senate A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...

in 1822 and 1826–1827. In 1828, Scott was sworn in as Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi, and in 1832, he was sworn in as the

seventh Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven. Seventh may refer to: * Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution * A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts Film and television *"The Seventh", a second-season e ...

Governor of Mississippi, having defeated

Hiram Runnels Hiram George Runnels (December 15, 1796 — December 17, 1857) was a U.S. politician from the states of Mississippi and Texas. He was a Democrat who served as the ninth governor of Mississippi from November 20, 1833, to December 3, 1835. B ...

in the general election of August 1831. During Scott's administration, the State of South Carolina attempted to nullify a tariff passed by the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

, leading to the Nullification Crisis, in which South Carolina's government threatened to secede from the United States. Like other southern states, Mississippi did not support South Carolina's actions, defusing the crisis. In 1832, Mississippi ratified a new constitution, which led to a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...

for public officials under the new constitution in May 1833. Scott was defeated by Hiram Runnels in this election, but due to disputes over the legality of the special election, Scott was permitted to remain in office. He served until he died on June 12, 1833, due to a

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

epidemic in Jackson, and was succeeded by Charles Lynch. He is buried in Greenwood Cemetery in

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...

Scott County, Mississippi Scott County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 28,264. Its county seat is Forest. The county is named for Abram M. Scott, the Governor of Mississippi from 1832 to 1833. Geography A ...

is named in his honor.

References

External links

Abram Marshall Scott
a
''National Governors Association''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Abram M. 1785 births 1833 deaths People from Edgefield County, South Carolina Mississippi National Republicans Deaths from cholera in the United States Mississippi state senators Governors of Mississippi National Republican Party state governors of the United States