John Randolph Tucker (December 24, 1823 – February 13, 1897) was an American lawyer, author, and politician from
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
. From a distinguished family, he was elected Virginia's attorney general in 1857 and after re-election served during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
(
James S. Wheat served as attorney general in Union-held portions of the state). After a pardon and
Congressional Reconstruction
The Reconstruction era was a period in US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the abolition of slavery and reintegration of the former Confederate Sta ...
, Tucker was elected as U.S. Congressman (1875-1887), and later served as the first dean of the
Washington and Lee University Law School.
Early life and family
Tucker was born in
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is the northwesternmost Administrative divisions of Virginia#Independent cities, independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It is the county seat of Frederick County, Virginia, Frederi ...
on Christmas Eve in 1823, the son of Anna Evalina Hunter Tucker (1789-1855) and her husband Judge
Henry St. George Tucker (1780-1848). A grandson of
St. George Tucker, J.R. Tucker would become proud of his heritage among the
First Families of Virginia
The First Families of Virginia, or FFV, are a group of early settler families who became a socially and politically dominant group in the British Colony of Virginia and later the Commonwealth of Virginia. They descend from European colonists who ...
. His father and many relatives owned plantations and enslaved persons. Nonetheless, several of his siblings never reached adulthood. His brothers Dr. Alfred Bland Tucker (1830-1862) and Lt.Col. St. George Hunter Tucker (1828-1863) would die of consumption while in the
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...
; his brother Dr.
David Hunter Tucker (1815-1871) became a professor at three medical schools including the
Medical College of Virginia
The VCU Medical Center (VCU Health), formerly known as the Medical College of Virginia (MCV), is the medical campus of Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), located in downtown Richmond, Virginia, United States. As MCV, VCU Medical Center merged ...
and survived his Confederate service. His brother
Nathaniel Beverley Tucker (1820-1890) would become a Confederate diplomat and later a journalist.
John Randolph Tucker attended a private school near his Winchester home, then entered the Richmond Academy. He finished his studies at the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
, graduating with a legal degree in 1844.
He married Laura Powell in 1848. They had one son who survived to adulthood,
Henry St. George Tucker, III
Henry St. George Tucker III (April 5, 1853 – July 23, 1932) was a representative from the Commonwealth of Virginia to the United States House of Representatives, professor of law, and president of the American Bar Association.
Early and fam ...
(who later became a U.S. Congressman). Their daughters who married well and survived their parents included: Anne Holmes Tucker McGuire (1850 - 1914), Gertrude Tucker Logan (1856 - 1925), and Laura Randolph Tucker Pendleton (1860 - 1946).
Early legal and political career
John Randolph Tucker was admitted to the Virginia bar in 1845, and began a private legal practice in
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
. In 1854 he delivered a major speech to the literary societies at
College of William and Mary
The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III and Queen Mary II, it is the second-oldest instit ...
which argued that slavery was consistent with republicanism. He also became active in politics and was a presidential elector on the
Democratic ticket in 1852 and 1856.
American Civil War
Voters elected Tucker
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
of the
Commonwealth of Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
in 1857, and he served during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, until the Commonwealth surrendered to Union forces in 1865. His siblings also actively supported the
Confederate
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
cause, two as Confederate doctors, Nathaniel Beverley Tucker as a Confederate diplomat, and his lawyer brother St. George Hunter Tucker recruited the Ashland Grays (part of the
15th Virginia Infantry) and served at Lt. Col., winning plaudits for his conduct at the
Battle of Malvern Hill
The Battle of Malvern Hill, also known as the Battle of Poindexter's Farm, was fought on July 1, 1862, between the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, led by Gen. Robert E. Lee, and the Union Army of the Potomac under Maj. Gen. George B. ...
before resigning his commission and dying of consumption in Charlottesville in 1863.
Postwar legal and political career
Tucker received a pardon and resumed his private legal practice.
Elected to the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
as a Democrat in 1875, he served until 1887. He was chairman of the
House Committee on Ways and Means
The Committee on Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee has jurisdiction over all taxation, tariffs, and other revenue-raising measures, as well as a number of other program ...
in the
46th Congress and chairman of the
House Committee on the Judiciary
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, f ...
in the
48th and
49th Congresses.
He took an active part in the debates on the
tariff
A tariff or import tax is a duty (tax), duty imposed by a national Government, government, customs territory, or supranational union on imports of goods and is paid by the importer. Exceptionally, an export tax may be levied on exports of goods ...
, in opposition to the protective policy. His speeches on other questions include those on the
Electoral Commission
An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
bill, the constitutional doctrine as to the presidential count, the Hawaiian treaty in 1876, the use of the army at the polls, in 1879, and Chinese emigration, in 1883. He introduced legislation broadening the power of the federal
Court of Claims to hear Constitutional claims in 1886, which became known as the
Tucker Act
The Tucker Act (March 3, 1887, ch. 359, , ) is a federal statute of the United States by which the United States government has waived its sovereign immunity with respect to certain lawsuits.
The Tucker Act may be divided into the "Big" Tucker A ...
. He declined to be renominated to the House in 1886. He was co-sponsor of the 1887
Edmunds–Tucker Act
The Edmunds–Tucker Act of 1887 was an Act of Congress that restricted some practices of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and disincorporated the LDS Church. An amendment to the earlier Edmunds Act, it was passed in ...
.
Tucker was an exemplar of the racist views of his day. Speaking on the House floor, he asserted that “We did not ordain and establish this Constitution for the Chinaman and for all the other races of the earth. . . . I hold that this Constitution was ordained and established by our fathers for their posterity of the Caucasian people of America.” Not surprisingly, he was also not supportive of the post-Civil War push to grant rights to African Americans, declaring that “. . . there is not a philosophical statesman in this land who to-day does not say either that the citizenship and the voting power of the African race in the South is a failure--either that or that it is an unsolved problem of our future. We have that one disease in the body-politic, which God grant we may recover from.”
Electoral history
*1874 — Tucker was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives with 65.23% of the vote, defeating Republican
J. Foote Johnson.
*1876 — Tucker was re-elected with 59.61% of the vote, defeating Republican
George H. Burch.
*1878 — Tucker was re-elected with 63.42% of the vote, defeating Independent Democrat
Camm Patterson and Independent
Lewis W. Cabell.
*1880 — Tucker was re-elected with 59.56% of the vote, defeating Readjuster
James A. Frazier
James may refer to:
People
* James (given name)
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* James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician
* James, brother of Jesus
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and Republican
David J. Woodfin.
*1882 — Tucker was re-elected with 54.95% of the vote, defeating Readjuster
Henry J. Rives and Republican Woodfin.
*1884 — Tucker was re-elected, but to
Virginia's 10th congressional district
Virginia's 10th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Situated in the suburbs and exurbs of Northern Virginia, the district includes the entireties of Loudoun, Fauquier, and Rappahannock c ...
Tucker made an unsuccessful but legally influential argument on behalf of
August Spies and the other
Haymarket Riot defendants during their appeal to the
Supreme Court
In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
. Elected
professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...
of
Constitutional law
Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in ...
at
Washington and Lee University
Washington and Lee University (Washington and Lee or W&L) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. Established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, it is among ...
in 1888, Tucker was
Dean of the
School of Law
A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for bec ...
from 1893 to 1897. Tucker served as president of The
Virginia Bar Association
The Virginia Bar Association (VBA) is a voluntary organization of lawyers, judges and law school faculty and students in Virginia, with offices in Richmond, Virginia. Key elements are advocacy, professionalism, service and collegiality. It pro ...
in 1891–1892, and president of the
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...
in 1894. He was elected to the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...
in 1895.
Death and legacy
Tucker died in 1897 in
Lexington, Virginia
Lexington is an Independent city (United States)#Virginia, independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 7,320. It is the county seat of Rockbridge County, Virg ...
and is buried in the family plot at
Mount Hebron Cemetery in Winchester. His widow died in 1916. Tucker's two volume treatise, ''The Constitution of the United States'', appeared posthumously in 1899. One of his sons, Henry St. George Tucker, also became dean of the Washington and Lee Law School, and later a U.S. Congressman representing Winchester. His Lexington home,
Blandome, was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 2002.
Works
Race Progress in the United States, by J. R. Tucker, ''The North American review''. / Volume 138, Issue 327 (February, 1884) pp. 163-178The History of the Federal Convention of 1787, and of its work, by J. Randolph Tucker, ''New Englander and Yale review'' / Volume 47, Issue 209 (August, 1887) pp. 97-147.Virginia in the Supreme Court, by J. Randolph Tucker, ''The North American review'' / Volume 146, Issue 379 (June, 1888) pp. 674-681.*
Notes
References
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tucker, John Randolph
1823 births
1897 deaths
Virginia attorneys general
People from Winchester, Virginia
Presidents of the American Bar Association
Politicians from Winchester, Virginia
University of Virginia School of Law alumni
John Randolph Tucker (1823-1897)
American people of English descent
American people of Bermudian descent
Washington and Lee University School of Law faculty
Virginia lawyers
People from Lexington, Virginia
People of Virginia in the American Civil War
Writers from Virginia
American legal writers
American legal historians
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia
Burials at Mount Hebron Cemetery (Winchester, Virginia)
Members of the United States House of Representatives who owned slaves
Members of the American Philosophical Society
19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives