John Adams Gilmer (November 4, 1805 – May 4, 1868) was a Congressional Representative from

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. Gilmer was born in

Guilford County, North Carolina Guilford County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population is 541,299, making it the third-most populous county in North Carolina. The county seat, and largest municipality, is Greensboro. Si ...

near

Greensboro Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

. His parents were Robert Shaw Gilmer and Anne Forbes. He was the brother of

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

Maj. Gen Jeremy Francis Gilmer. Gilmer attended the public schools and an academy in Greensboro. After receiving his education, he taught school. He then studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1832 and began practice in Greensboro. He later served as the Guilford County solicitor. He was a member of 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 ...

from 1846 to 1856. In 1856, Gilmer was the Whig candidate for

Governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The governor directs the executive branch of the government and is the commander in chief of the military forces of the state. The current governor, ...

but was defeated. He was elected as the candidate of the American Party to the Thirty-fifth Congress and reelected as a candidate of the

Opposition Party Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. This article uses the term ''government'' as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning ''th ...

to the Thirty-sixth Congress (March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861). During the Thirty-sixth Congress, he was the Chairman of the Committee on Elections. In January 1861,

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

considered him for a position in his incoming cabinet, and

William H. Seward William Henry Seward (May 16, 1801 – October 10, 1872) was an American politician who served as United States Secretary of State from 1861 to 1869, and earlier served as governor of New York and as a United States Senator. A determined oppon ...

sounded him out on the question, but Gilmer temporized until the matter was dropped.John Hay and John George Nicolay (1890), ''Abraham Lincoln: A History'', Volume III, pp. 362–363. After secession, Gilmer served as a member of the

Second Confederate Congress The 2nd Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, met from May 2, 1864, to March 18, 1865, during the last year of Jefferson Davis's presidency, at the Virginia S ...

in 1864. He served as a delegate to the Union National Convention of Conservatives at

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in 1866. Gilmer died in Greensboro, North Carolina, and is interred in the Old First Presbyterian Church Cemetery at the Greensboro Historical Museum.

References

External links

U.S. Congressional Biographical Directory
* 1805 births 1868 deaths People from Greensboro, North Carolina North Carolina Oppositionists North Carolina Whigs Know-Nothing members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina Opposition Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina Members of the Confederate House of Representatives from North Carolina North Carolina state senators 19th-century American politicians {{NorthCarolina-politician-stub

See also

References

External links