John Breckinridge (Virginia And Kentucky)

John Breckinridge (December 2, 1760 – December 14, 1806) was a lawyer, slave-owning planter, soldier, and politician in the U.S. states of Virginia and Kentucky. He served several terms each in the state legislatures of Virginia and Kentucky before legislators elected him to the U.S. Senate. He also served as United States Attorney General during the second term of President Thomas Jefferson. He is the progenitor of Kentucky's Breckinridge political family and the namesake of Breckinridge County, Kentucky.

Breckinridge's father was landowner and colonel in the local Virginia militia who married into the Preston political family. Breckinridge attended the William and Mary College intermittently between 1780 and 1784; his attendance was interrupted by the Revolutionary War and he three times won election to the Virginia House of Delegates. One of the youngest members of that (part-time) body, this allowed him to meet many prominent politicians. In 1785, he married "Polly" Cabell, a member of the Cabell political family. Despite making his legal and farming activities, letters from relatives in Kentucky convinced him to move to the western frontier. He established "Cabell's Dale", his plantation, near Lexington, Kentucky, in 1793.

Breckinridge continued his legal and political career and was appointed as the state's attorney general soon after arriving. In November 1797, he resigned to campaign, then won election to the Kentucky House of Representatives. As a legislator, Breckinridge secured passage of a more humane criminal code that abolished the death penalty for all offenses except first-degree murder. On a 1798 trip back to Virginia, an intermediary gave him Thomas Jefferson's Kentucky Resolutions, which denounced the Alien and Sedition Acts. At Jefferson's request, Breckinridge assumed credit for the modified resolutions he shepherded through the Kentucky General Assembly; Jefferson's authorship was not discovered until after Breckinridge's death. Although Breckinridge opposed calling a constitutional convention for the new state in 1799 he was elected as a delegate. Due to his influence, the state's government remained comparatively aristocratic, maintaining protections for slavery and limiting the power of the electorate. Called the father of the resultant constitution, he emerged from the convention as the acknowledged leader of the state's Democratic-Republican Party and fellow delegates elected him Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives in 1799 and 1800.

Elected to the U.S. Senate in 1800, Breckinridge functioned as Jefferson's floor leader, guiding administration bills through the chamber that was narrowly controlled by his party. Residents of the western frontier called for his nomination as vice president in 1804, but Jefferson appointed him as U.S. Attorney General in 1805 instead. He was the first cabinet-level official from the West but had little impact before his death from tuberculosis on December 14, 1806, at the age of 46.

Early life and family

John Breckinridge's grandfather, Alexander Breckenridge, immigrated from Ireland to Bucks County, Pennsylvania, around 1728, while the Breckinridge family originated in Ayrshire, Scotland, before migrating to Ulster (possibly County Antrim or County Londonderry) probably in the late 17th century.Davis notes that John Breckinridge changed the spelling of the family name for unknown reasons during his time in the Virginia House of Delegates between 1781 and 1784. See Davis, p. 5. In 1740, the family moved to Augusta County, Virginia, near the city of Staunton and Alexander died there in 1743.

John Breckinridge was born in Augusta County on December 2, 1760, the second of six children of Robert Breckenridge and his second wife, Lettice (Preston) Breckenridge.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 8. His mother was the daughter of John Preston of Virginia's Preston political family."John Breckinridge". ''Dictionary of American Biography''. Robert Breckinridge had two children by a previous marriage, and through one of these half-brothers that John Breckinridge was uncle to future Congressman James D. Breckinridge.The paternity of James D. Breckinridge is disputed; see ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 8. A veteran of the French and Indian War, Robert Breckinridge had farmed as well as served first as Augusta County's under-sheriff, then as sheriff, then justice of the peace. Soon after John Breckinridge's birth, the family moved southward along the Wilderness Road to Botetourt County where Robert Breckinridge farmed, as well as became a constable and justice of the peace, and served in the local militia. He died in 1773, leaving 12-year-old John of land, one slave, and half-ownership of another slave.Klotter in ''The Breckiridges of Kentucky'', p. 9.

Breckinridge received a private education suitable to his class, possibly including Augusta Academy (now Washington and Lee University), but any records containing this information have been lost. After his father's death, the younger Breckinridge helped support the family by selling whiskey, brandy, and hemp.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 21. He learned surveying from his uncle, William Preston, and between 1774 and 1779, held a clerical job in the Botetourt County land office in Fincastle. Preston sought opportunities for his nephew to attend private schools alongside his sons, but Breckinridge's other responsibilities interfered with his attendance.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 5. Preston also nominated Breckinridge as deputy surveyor of Montgomery County, a position he accepted after passing the requisite exam on February 1, 1780.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 6. Later that year, he joined his cousin, future Kentucky Senator John Brown, at William and Mary College (now College of William & Mary).Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 22. The instructors who influenced him most were Reverend James Madison and George Wythe.

The Revolutionary War forced William and Mary to close in 1781, and during various times during the conflict British, French, and American troops used them as barracks while controlling the surrounding area.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 7. Although William C. Davis records that Breckinridge had previously served as an ensign in the Botetourt County militia, Harrison notes that the most reliable records of Virginians' military service do not indicate his participation in the Revolutionary War, and less reliable sources mention him as a subaltern in the Virginia militia.Davis, p. 4.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 20. If Breckinridge served, Harrison speculates that such occurred in one or two short 1780 militia campaigns supporting Nathanael Greene's army in southwest Virginia.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 9.

Early political career

Although he had not sought the office and was not old enough to serve, Botetourt County voters twice elected Breckinridge to represent them part-time as one of the western county's representatives in the Virginia House of Delegates in late 1780. Though without documentary support, some claim fellow delegates twice refused Breckinridge his seat because of his age, but his constituents reelected him each time, and he was seated the third time.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 10. His legislative colleagues included Patrick Henry, Benjamin Harrison, John Tyler, John Taylor of Caroline, George Nicholas, Daniel Boone, and Benjamin Logan.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 24.

Prevented by British soldiers from meeting at Williamsburg, the House convened May 7, 1781, in Richmond, but failed to achieve a quorum. Because of British General Charles Cornwallis' May 10 advance on that city, the legislators adjourned to Charlottesville on May 24. Breckinridge arrived in Charlottesville on May 28; a quorum was present to conduct legislative business through June 3. The next morning, Jack Jouett rode into the city, warning the legislators that 250 light cavalrymen under Banastre Tarleton were approaching. Legislators quickly adjourned to Staunton and fled for their horses. Days later, they completed the session's business there. Breckinridge stayed at his mother's house between sessions, rejoining the legislature in Richmond in November 1781. Much of the session consisted of adopting resolutions of thanks for individuals who had made that city safe by defeating Cornwallis at Yorktown.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 11.

Financial difficulties prevented Breckinridge's return to college.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky''. He did not seek reelection in 1782; instead, he spent a year earning money by surveying, and was reelected to the House of Delegates in 1783, joining his legislative colleagues in May. He also joined the Constitutional Society of Virginia; fellow society members included future U.S. presidents James Madison and James Monroe.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 11. The House adjourned June 28, 1783, and Breckinridge returned to William and Mary, studying through the end of the year, excepting the legislative session in November and December.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 25. With the war over, he urged that no economic or political penalties be imposed on former Loyalists. In contrast to his later political views, he desired a stronger central government than provided for in the Articles of Confederation; he argued that the national government could not survive unless it could tax its citizens, a power it did not have under the Articles.Harrison in "John Breckinridge: Western Statesman", p. 138.

Financial problems caused Breckinridge to leave William and Mary after the spring semester in 1784.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 23. Because of his studies earlier in the year, he had no time to campaign for reelection to the House of Delegates, so he asked his brother Joseph and his cousin John Preston to campaign on his behalf.Harrison, in "A Young Virginian", p. 26. Initially, his prospects seemed favorable, but he was beaten by future Virginia Congressman George Hancock. After the defeat, voters from Montgomery County – where Breckinridge had previously been a surveyor – chose him to represent them in the House. As a Virginia legislator, Breckinridge served on the prestigious committees on Propositions and Grievances, Courts of Justice, Religion, and Investigation of the Land Offices. His fellow committee members included Henry Tazewell, Carter Henry Harrison, Edward Carrington, Spencer Roane, John Marshall, Richard Bland Lee, and Wilson Cary Nicholas.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 13. Inspired by his legislative service, he spent the summer between legislative sessions studying to become a lawyer.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 27. The legislative session focused on domestic issues like whether Virginia should establish a tax to benefit religion in the state.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 14. Breckinridge was not associated with any denomination, and his writings indicate that he was opposed to such a tax.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 15. Instead, he and James Madison secured approval of a religious liberty bill first proposed by Thomas Jefferson over five years earlier. The legislature rose on January 7, 1785, and Breckinridge was admitted to the bar later that year, beginning practice in Charlottesville."Breckinridge, John", ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress''.

Marriage and children

On June 28, 1785, Breckinridge married Mary Hopkins ("Polly") Cabell, daughter of Joseph Cabell, a member of the Cabell political family. Polly's dowry included a 400-acre (1.6-km²) plantation in Albemarle County dubbed "The Glebe". Nine children were born to the John and Polly Breckinridge – Letitia Preston (b. 1786), Joseph "Cabell" (b. 1787), Mary Hopkins (b. 1790), Robert (b. 1793), Mary Ann (b. 1795), John (b. 1797), Robert Jefferson (b. 1800), William Lewis (b. 1803), and James Monroe (b. 1806).

Polly, Cabell, and Letitia all fell ill but survived a smallpox epidemic in 1793; however, Mary Hopkins and their first son named Robert died.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 32. Cabell Breckinridge would later follow a similar career as a planter, lawyer and politician, and become Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives and later Kentucky's Secretary of State.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 40. Other sons became ministers and planters; the family's loyalties would be split during the American Civil War long after this man's death. Cabell Beckinridge's son John C. Breckinridge continued the family legal, planter and political traditions and become U.S. Vice President John C. Breckinridge, and a presidential candidate, only to side with the Confederacy during the American Civil War.Klotter in ''The Kentucky Encyclopedia'', p. 116. Meanwhile his brother John Breckinridge also attended the same university, receiving a degree from Princeton Theological Seminary, before serving as chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives, and president of Oglethorpe College (now Oglethorpe University) in Georgia. Robert Jefferson Breckinridge became superintendent of public instruction under Governor William Owsley and became known as the father of Kentucky's public education system. William Lewis Breckinridge became a prominent Presbyterian minister, serving as moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly in 1859 and later as president of Centre College in Danville, Kentucky, and Oakland College in Yale, Mississippi. In 1804, this Breckinridge's daughter Letitia married Alfred W. Grayson, son of Virginia Senator William Grayson.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 33. Alfred Grayson died in 1808, and in 1816, the widowed Letitia married Peter Buell Porter, who would later serve as Secretary of War under President John Quincy Adams.

Meanwhile, farming at the Glebe proved barely enough for Breckinridge's growing family.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 28. Breckinridge's legal career provided enough money for some comforts but required long hours and difficult work.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 30. Patrick Henry regularly represented clients opposite Breckinridge, and John Marshall both referred clients to him and asked him to represent his own clients in his absence. Though still interested in politics, Breckinridge refused to campaign for the people's support.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 31. He believed changes were needed to the Articles of Confederation and agreed with much of the proposed U.S. constitution, but he did not support equal representation of the states in the Senate nor the federal judiciary.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 38. Heeding the advice of his brother James and his friend, Archibald Stuart, he did not seek election as a delegate to Virginia's ratification convention.

Relocation to Kentucky

Breckinridge's half-brothers, Andrew and Robert, moved to Kentucky in 1781, and his brother William followed in 1783. By 1785, Andrew and Robert were trustees of Louisville.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 12. Their letters described Kentucky's abundant land and plentiful legal business, in contrast to the crowded bar and scarce unclaimed land in Virginia. By 1788, Breckinridge was convinced that Kentucky offered him more opportunity, and the next year, he traveled west to seek land on which to construct an estate.Harrison in "John Breckinridge of Kentucky", p. 205.Harrison in "A Virginian Moves to Kentucky", p. 203. Although inaccurate reports of his death reached Virginia, he arrived safely in Kentucky on April 15, 1789, and returned to Virginia in June.Harrison in "A Virginian Moves to Kentucky", p. 205. The following year, he paid 360 pounds sterling for along the North Elkhorn Creek about from present-day Lexington, Kentucky. The land, purchased from his only sister Betsy's father-in-law, lay adjacent to land owned by his sister, and in 1792, he purchased an adjacent , bringing his total holdings in Kentucky to .Harrison in "John Breckinridge of Kentucky", p. 206. After the purchase, he instructed William Russell, a friend already living in Kentucky, to find tenants to lease and improve the land.Harrison in "A Virginian Moves to Kentucky", p. 206.

In February 1792, Breckinridge, a Democratic-Republican, was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives over token opposition.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 32. On the date of the election, he wrote to Archibald Stuart, "The People appearing willing to elect, I could have no objection to serve them one Winter in Congress."Harrison in "A Virginian Moves to Kentucky", p. 209. Despite this, he left for Kentucky in March 1793 and resigned without serving a day in Congress, which convened on March 4.Harrison in "A Young Virginian", p. 34. He chose the longer but safer route to Kentucky, joining a group of flatboats at Brownsville, Pennsylvania, for the trip down the Monongahela and Ohio rivers to Limestone (now Maysville, Kentucky). His family, along with 25 slaves, arrived in April and established their plantation, Cabell's Dale.Harrison in "John Breckinridge of Kentucky", p. 210. By the time of Breckinridge's move, he owned in Kentucky.

Domestic life in Kentucky

When he arrived in Kentucky, much of Breckinridge's land was occupied by tenant farmers whose leases had not yet expired. He planted rye and wheat on of unleased land and sent 11 slaves and an overseer to clear land for the fall planting. Eventually, his crops at Cabell's Dale included corn, wheat, rye, barley, hay, grass seed, and hemp, but he refused to grow tobacco, a major cash crop, which he found too vulnerable to over-cultivation. He also bred thoroughbred horses, planted an orchard, and practiced law. He engaged in land speculation, particularly in the Northwest Territory, and at various times owned interests in iron and salt works, but these ventures were never very successful.Harrison in "John Breckinridge: Western Statesman", p. 142.

As his plantation became more productive, Breckinridge became interested in ways to sell his excess goods.Harrison in "John Breckinridge of Kentucky", p. 208. On August 26, 1793, he became a charter member of the Democratic Society of Kentucky, which lobbied the federal government to secure unrestricted use of the Mississippi River from Spain.Harrison and Klotter, p. 73. Breckinridge was elected chairman, Robert Todd and John Bradford were chosen as vice-chairmen, and Thomas Todd and Thomas Bodley were elected as clerks.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 54. Breckinridge authored a tract entitled ''Remonstrance of the Citizens West of the Mountains to the President and Congress of the United States'' and may have also written ''To the Inhabitants of the United States West of the Allegany (sic) and Apalachian (sic) Mountains''. He pledged funding to French minister Edmond-Charles Genêt's proposed military operation against Spain, but Genêt was recalled before it could be executed.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 18. Although alarmed that frontier settlers might initiate war with Spain, President George Washington made no immediate attempt to obtain use of the Mississippi, which the society maintained was "the natural right of the citizens of this Commonwealth". The resistance of the eastern states, particularly Federalist politicians, caused Breckinridge to reconsider his support of a strong central government.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 19.

Breckinridge was also concerned with easing overland transport of goods to Virginia. In mid-1795, he, Robert Barr, Elijah Craig, and Harry Toulmin formed a committee to raise funds for a road connecting the Cumberland Gap to central Kentucky. Breckinridge was disappointed with the quality of the route, which was finished in late 1796, concluding that the individual maintaining it was keeping most of the tolls instead of using them for the road's upkeep.

Breckinridge was also interested in education. Before moving to Kentucky, he accumulated a substantial library of histories, biographies, law and government texts, and classical literature. Frequently, he allowed aspiring lawyers and students access to the library, which was one of the most extensive in the west.Klotter in ''The Breckinridges of Kentucky'', p. 15. He also provided funding for a municipal library in Lexington. His lobbying for a college to be established in Lexington bore fruit with the opening of Transylvania Seminary (now Transylvania University) in 1788. He was elected to the seminary's board of trustees on October 9, 1793, and supported hiring Harry Toulmin as president in February 1794 and consolidating the seminary with Kentucky Academy in 1796.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', pp. 64–65. Conservatives on the board and in the Kentucky General Assembly forced Toulmin – a liberal Unitarian – to resign in 1796, and Breckinridge's enthusiasm for his trusteeship waned. He attended board meetings less frequently and resigned in late 1797.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 65.

Kentucky Attorney General

Kentucky needed qualified governmental leaders, and on December 19, 1793, Kentucky Governor Isaac Shelby appointed Breckinridge attorney general. Three weeks after accepting, he was offered the post of District Attorney for the Federal District of Kentucky, but he declined.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 62. Secretary of State Edmund Randolph directed Shelby to prevent French agents in Kentucky from organizing an expedition against Spanish Louisiana.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 59. On Breckinridge's advice, Shelby responded that he lacked the authority to interfere. Lack of funding prevented the expedition, but Shelby's noncommittal response helped prompt passage of the Neutrality Act of 1794 which outlawed participation by U.S. citizens in such expeditions.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 60.

In November 1794, the Democratic-Republicans nominated Breckinridge to succeed John Edwards in the U.S. Senate.Harrison and Klotter, p. 75. Federalists were generally unpopular in Kentucky, but the signing of Pinckney's Treaty – which temporarily secured Kentucky's use of the Mississippi River – and Anthony Wayne's expedition against the Indians in the Northwest Territory prompted a surge of support for the federal government in Kentucky.Harrison in ''John Breckinridge: Jeffersonian Republican'', p. 63. The election's first ballot reflected this, as Federalist candidate Humphrey Marshall received 18 votes to Breckinridge's 16, John Fowler's 8, and 7 votes for the incumbent Edwards. On the runoff ballot, Marshall was elected over Breckinridge by a vote of 28–22. Harrison posits that Marshall's incumbency in the General Assembly may have aided his election but notes that Marshall downplayed its significance.

In May 1796, Kentucky's gubernatorial electors convened to choose Shelby's successor. Their votes were split among four candidates; frontiersman Benjamin Logan received 21 votes, Baptist minister James Garrard received 17, Thomas Todd received 14, and Breckinridge's cousin, Senator John Brown, received 1. The Kentucky Constitution did not specify whether a plurality or a majority

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