Joseph Clay Stiles Blackburn (October 1, 1838September 12, 1918) was a Democratic Representative and Senator from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. Blackburn, a skilled and spirited orator, was also a prominent trial lawyer known for his skill at swaying juries.

Biography

Blackburn was born on October 1, 1838 near Spring Station, Kentucky. He was the younger brother of

Kentucky governor The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-el ...

Luke P. Blackburn. He attended Sayres Institute in Frankfort and graduated from

Centre College Centre College is a private liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819. The college is ...

in Danville in 1857. He studied law in Lexington and was admitted to the bar in 1858. He practiced in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

until 1860 when he returned to

Woodford County, Kentucky Woodford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 26,871. Its county seat is Versailles. The area was home to Pisgah Academy. Woodford County is part of the Lexington-Fayette, KY Metrop ...

and entered the

Confederate 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 a private in 1861. A staff officer, by the end of 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 ...

Blackburn had attained the rank of lieutenant colonel. After the war he settled in

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

where he was engaged as a lawyer and a planter in Desha County until 1868 when he returned to Kentucky and opened law offices in

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

. He was a member of the State house of representatives from 1871 to 1875. He was then 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-fourth and to the four succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1875 - March 3, 1885). He was the chairman of the Committee on the District of Columbia (Forty-fifth Congress) and the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of War (Forty-fifth and Forty-sixth Congresses). In 1885, Lt. Henry T. Allen of the U.S. army named a mountain after Joseph Blackburn.

Mount Blackburn Mount Blackburn is the highest peak in the Wrangell Mountains of Alaska in the United States. It is the fifth-highest peak in the United States and the twelfth-highest peak in North America. The mountain is an old, eroded shield volcano, the se ...

is the highest peak in the Wrangell Mountains of the state of Alaska and the fifth highest peak in the United States. He was elected to the United States Senate in 1884, was reelected in 1890, and served from March 4, 1885, to March 3, 1897. He failed to be reelected in 1896. He was the chairman of the Committee on Rules (Fifty-third Congress). He was once again elected to the United States Senate in 1900 and served from March 4, 1901 to March 3, 1907, but failed in his next election bid in 1906. Loosely associated with the free-silver wing of the Democratic party, he was well-known nationally and his name was placed in nomination for the presidency in 1896. He was appointed Governor of the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

by President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

on April 1, 1907. He resigned and returned to his estate in Woodford County. He died on September 12, 1918 in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He was interred in the State Cemetery in Frankfort.

References

External links

* , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Blackburn, JCS 1838 births 1918 deaths Arkansas lawyers Illinois lawyers Kentucky lawyers Centre College alumni American planters Democratic Party United States senators from Kentucky Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky People from Woodford County, Kentucky 19th-century American politicians People of Kentucky in the American Civil War Confederate States Army officers Farmers from Illinois Farmers from Arkansas 19th-century American lawyers

Biography

References

Further reading

External links