David Christy Butler (December 15, 1829 – May 25, 1891) was a U.S.

political figure A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. He was the first

governor of Nebraska The governor of Nebraska is the head of government of the U.S. state of Nebraska as provided by the fourth article of the Constitution of Nebraska. The officeholder is elected to a four-year term, with elections held two years after presidential ...

, serving from 1867 until 1871. Tipton, Thomas Weston
Forty Years of Nebraska at Home and in Congress
pp. 104–117 (1902) He was the first governor of

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

after statehood and the only Nebraska governor to date to be

impeached Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

Biography

Butler was born near

Linton, Indiana Linton is a city in Stockton Township, Greene County, Indiana, United States. The population was 5,413 at the 2010 census. A coal mining city, it is located southeast of Terre Haute. The current mayor is John Wilkes. Linton is part of the Bloom ...

, the eldest son of 10 children. His education was limited to the common schools and he worked at farming and cattle trading. He married twice. His first wife was Mary Pauline Smith Butler and his second was Lydia Story Butler. He and Lydia were married on January 25, 1860, and he had eight children.

Career

Butler was nominated for a state senate seat in Indiana in 1856, but withdrew before the election. He moved three years later to

Pawnee City, Nebraska Pawnee City is a city and county seat of Pawnee County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 878 at the 2010 census. History Pawnee City was incorporated in 1858, and is named after the Pawnee Native Americans. By the 1880s, Pawnee Ci ...

, and engaged in trading cattle until his election to the

Nebraska Territorial Legislature The Nebraska Territorial Legislature was held from January 16, 1855 until 1865 in Omaha City, Nebraska Territory. Major issues Slavery In 1854 the Kansas–Nebraska Act created the Nebraska Territory, overturning the Missouri Compromise ...

in 1861. He was elected to the

Nebraska State Senate The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the smal ...

in 1863 and won the 1866 election to become Nebraska's first governor. During his second term (1869–1870), Butler moved the state's capital from

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

to present-day Lincoln. In the spring of 1871, soon after taking office for his third term, eleven articles of

impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

were brought against him. The first charged him with misuse of some $16,000 from the state school fund. Butler had allegedly made personal use of this money to purchase lots in the new city of Lincoln. He was suspended from office by the Supreme Court and subsequently tried by the State Senate. In his

impeachment trial An impeachment trial is a trial that functions as a component of an impeachment. Several governments utilize impeachment trials as a part of their processes for impeachment, but differ as to when in the impeachment process trials take place and how ...

, he was convicted on the first charge, although the remaining ten were dropped. The Supreme Court then removed him from office on June 2, 1871. In 1877, the Legislature reviewed its action and adopted a resolution expunging the impeachment proceedings from the record. After ten years of retirement from public life, Butler was elected to the Nebraska State Senate on the Independent Ticket in 1882. Running on the Union Labor Ticket in 1888, he again sought the Governorship but was defeated.

Death and legacy

Following this defeat Butler retired to his home in

Pawnee City Pawnee City is a city and county seat of Pawnee County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 878 at the 2010 census. History Pawnee City was incorporated in 1858, and is named after the Pawnee Native Americans. By the 1880s, Pawnee Ci ...

, where he died on May 25, 1891, and is interred at Pawnee City Cemetery. Butler County in eastern Nebraska may have been named for him, but this is disputed, since records seem to indicate that the county was being referred to as "Butler County" before David Butler had served as Governor of Nebraska. Butler also may be the namesake of

David City, Nebraska David City is a city in Butler County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,995 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Butler County. David City was founded in 1873 to serve as the county seat when county residents desired a more ...

, but this is also disputed.

References

External links

* at the

Nebraska State Historical Society History Nebraska, formerly the Nebraska State Historical Society is a Nebraska state agency, founded in 1878 to "encourage historical research and inquiry, spread historical information ... and to embrace alike aboriginal and modern history." ...

*
The Downfall Dictionary
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, David 1829 births 1891 deaths 19th-century American politicians Governors of Nebraska Impeached state and territorial governors of the United States removed from office‎ Members of the Nebraska Territorial Legislature Nebraska Independents Nebraska politicians convicted of crimes Nebraska Republicans Nebraska state senators People from Greene County, Indiana People from Pawnee City, Nebraska Republican Party governors of Nebraska