John Calhoun Nicholls (April 25, 1834 – December 25, 1893) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. Born in

Clinton, Georgia Clinton is an unincorporated town in Jones County, Georgia, United States. Formerly the county seat of Jones County, Clinton is located along Georgia State Route 18 (and the former US 129) only southwest of the center of Gray. The center ...

, Nicholls attended private schools and graduated from the

College of William and Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William III ...

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 15,425. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. It is ...

, in 1855. After studying law, he was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1855 and practiced in Clinch and Ware Counties, Georgia. He was practicing law in Waynesville,

Wayne County, Georgia Wayne County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,144. The county seat is Jesup. Wayne County comprises the Jesup, Georgia Micropolitan Statistical Area. ...

by 1860. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

he first served in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

as captain, Sea Coast Guard, commissioned a brigadier general of the 2nd Brigade of the 6th Division

Georgia Militia The Georgia Militia existed from 1733 to 1879. It was originally planned by General James Oglethorpe prior to the founding of the Province of Georgia, the British colony that would become the U.S. state of Georgia. One reason for the founding of th ...

, and then served as a captain, Company I, of the Fourth Regiment, Georgia Cavalry. After the war, Nicholls was a lawyer in

Blackshear, Georgia The city of Blackshear is the county seat of Pierce County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 3,506. Blackshear is part of the Waycross Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Blackshear is located a ...

. He served as member of the State constitutional convention in 1865, as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1876, and in the

Georgia State Senate The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Legal provisions The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, with the lower house being the Georgia Ho ...

from 1870 to 1875. Nicholls was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the Forty-sixth Congress (March 4, 1879 – March 3, 1881), was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1880, but was elected to the Forty-eighth Congress (March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1885). After becoming an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1884, he resumed the practice of law in

, where he died December 25, 1893. He was interred in Blackshear Cemetery. Nicholls is the namesake of the city of

Nicholls, Georgia Nicholls is a city in Coffee County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,798 as of the 2010 census, up from 1,008 in 2000, due to counting of the Coffee County Correctional Facility population within the city limits. This facility is pri ...

Notes

References

* Smith, Gordon Burns, ''History of the Georgia Militia, 1783-1861, Volume One, Campaigns and Generals'', Milledgeville: Boyd Publishing, 2000. ASIN:B003L1PRKI. {{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholls, John Calhoun 1834 births 1893 deaths American planters College of William & Mary alumni Confederate States Army officers Democratic Party Georgia (U.S. state) state senators Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) People from Blackshear, Georgia People from Wayne County, Georgia 19th-century American politicians