Alexandre Mouton (November 19, 1804 – February 12, 1885) was a
United States senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
and the
11th Governor of Louisiana.
Early life
![Alexandre Mouton jeune](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Alexandre_Mouton_jeune.jpg)
He was born in
Attakapas district (now
Lafayette Parish
Lafayette Parish (french: Paroisse de Lafayette) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. According to the 2020 U.S. census, the parish had a population of 241,753, up from 221,578 at the 2010 United States census. The parish seat is ...
) into a wealthy plantation-owning
Acadian family. He pursued classical studies and graduated from
Georgetown College
Georgetown College is a private Christian college in Georgetown, Kentucky. Chartered in 1829, Georgetown was the first Baptist college west of the Appalachian Mountains.
The college offers 38 undergraduate degrees and a Master of Arts in educat ...
. He studied law, was admitted to the
bar in 1825, and commenced practice in Lafayette Parish. He married Zelia Rousseau, the granddaughter of Governor
Jacques Dupré
Jacques Dupré (February 12, 1773 – September 14, 1846) was a Louisiana State Representative, State Senator and the eighth Governor.
Born in New Orleans the eldest son of Laurent Dupré de Terrebonne (or, Dupré d'Arbonne) and Marie Joséphi ...
, in 1826; they had 5 children before her death in 1837, one of whom died in infancy. In 1842, he married Emma Kitchell Gardner; this marriage produced eight children, six of whom survived to adulthood.
Political career
From 1827 to 1832 was a member of the
Louisiana House of Representatives, serving as speaker in 1831 - 1832. He was a
presidential elector
The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia app ...
on the
Democratic ticket in 1828, 1832, and 1836, and was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1830 to the Twenty-second Congress. In 1836 he was again a member of the State house of representatives.
Mouton was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of
Alexander Porter, was reelected to the full term, and served from January 12, 1837, until his resignation on March 1, 1842. While in the Senate he was chairman of the Committee on Agriculture (Twenty-sixth Congress).
From 1843 to 1846, Mouton was governor of Louisiana. As governor, Mouton reduced expenditures and liquidated state assets to balance the budget and meet bond obligations without raising taxes. He sold state-owned steamboats, equipment and slaves used to remove the
Red River Raft in 1834 under Governor Roman. As governor, he opposed all expenditures for
internal improvements
Internal improvements is the term used historically in the United States for public works from the end of the American Revolution through much of the 19th century, mainly for the creation of a transportation infrastructure: roads, turnpikes, canal ...
. He leased out state penitentiary labor and equipment. He supported the call for a constitutional convention, removal of property qualifications for suffrage and office holding, and the election of all local officials and most judges.
Civil War
He was president of the State
secession
Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics le ...
convention in 1861 and an unsuccessful candidate to the
Confederate Senate
The Confederate States Congress was both the provisional and permanent legislative assembly of the Confederate States of America that existed from 1861 to 1865. Its actions were for the most part concerned with measures to establish a new nat ...
. Actively involved in railroads, he was president of the Southwestern Railroad Convention.
He was an active supporter of the Confederacy, devoting a large amount of his wealth to the cause. His son
Alfred Mouton became a general and died at the
Battle of Mansfield
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
. His daughter married Confederate
Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...
Franklin Gardner, whose older sister became his own second wife.
Death
He died near
Vermillionville (now Lafayette) in 1885. He is buried in the cemetery at
St. John's Cathedral.
References
Congressional Bioguide's Guide to Research Collections for Alexander MoutonNational Governors Association
External links
Painting of Governor Mouton's homeState of Louisiana - BiographyCemetery Memorialby La-Cemeteries
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mouton, Alexandre
1804 births
1885 deaths
Acadian people
American people of Acadian descent
Acadian history
Cajun people
Democratic Party governors of Louisiana
Speakers of the Louisiana House of Representatives
Democratic Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives
1828 United States presidential electors
1832 United States presidential electors
1836 United States presidential electors
American Roman Catholics
Georgetown University alumni
Democratic Party United States senators from Louisiana
Louisiana Jacksonians