John Murphy (1786 – September 21, 1841) was the
fourth Governor of the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
, serving two terms from 1825 to 1829.
Biography
Early life
John Murphy was born in 1786 in
Robeson County, North Carolina
Robeson County is a county in the southern part of the U.S. state of North Carolina and is its largest county by land area. Its county seat is and largest city is Lumberton. The county was formed in 1787 from part of Bladen County and named in ...
. He attended South Carolina College, now the
University of South Carolina, where he was a member of the
Clariosophic Society. Among his classmates at South Carolina College were
John Gayle and
James Dellet. Gayle also became Governor of Alabama while Dellet became a
U.S. Congressman from
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
. Murphy graduated in 1808.
Career
He became a clerk at the
South Carolina Senate. He was a trustee for the
University of South Carolina from 1808 to 1818.
In 1818, he moved to Alabama and was elected to the
Alabama House
The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency containi ...
in 1820 and the
Alabama Senate
The Alabama State Senate is the upper house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alabama. The body is composed of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, with each district conta ...
in 1822. He was elected Governor of Alabama in 1824, and in 1827 he was elected for a second term. He represented Alabama in the
United States House of Representatives
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 ...
from 1833 to 1835.
Personal life
Under the date of April 2, 1834,
John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States ...
records in his diary that Congressman
James Blair "shot himself last evening at his lodgings ... after reading part of an affectionate letter from his wife, to Governor Murphy, of Alabama, who was alone in the chamber with him, and a fellow-lodger at the same house." ''Diary'' (New York: Longmans, Green, 1929) p. 434.
Death
He died in 1841 in
Clarke County, Alabama
Clarke County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 23,087. The county seat is Grove Hill. The county's largest city is Jackson. The county was created by the l ...
. Murphy was buried in
Gosport.
References
External links
1786 births
1841 deaths
University of South Carolina alumni
Democratic Party governors of Alabama
People from Robeson County, North Carolina
Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama
19th-century American politicians
Democratic Party members of the Alabama House of Representatives
Democratic Party Alabama state senators
{{Alabama-politician-stub