Robert Woodward Barnwell (August 10, 1801 – November 5, 1882) was an American slave owner, planter, lawyer, and educator from

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = "Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = G ...

who served as a Senator in both the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and ...

and that of the

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confede ...

. Barnwell was a public defender of slavery and secession; he personally owned at least 128 enslaved persons.

Biography

He was born in

Beaufort, South Carolina Beaufort ( , a different pronunciation from that used by the city with the same name in North Carolina) is a city in and the county seat of Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1711, it is the second-oldest city in South ...

on August 10, 1801 into a prosperous and influential family. His father Robert Barnwell had served in the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

and the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

. He was also the great uncle of one of the most influential

fire-eaters In American history, the Fire-Eaters were a group of pro-slavery Democrats in the Antebellum South who urged the separation of Southern states into a new nation, which became the Confederate States of America. The dean of the group was Robert R ...

, Robert Barnwell Rhett. This Robert woodward Barnwell began his advanced education at Beaufort College, then graduated from Harvard. He returned home to manage the family plantation. Robert Woodward's political career began in 1826 when he served in the South Carolina state House of Representatives for Beaufort County. He held that office until 1828, when he was elected to the U.S. Congress. He served as a congressman from 1829 until 1833. Barnwell supported

nullification Nullification may refer to: * Nullification (U.S. Constitution), a legal theory that a state has the right to nullify any federal law deemed unconstitutional with respect to the United States Constitution * Nullification Crisis, the 1832 confron ...

and feared that

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame a ...

was "bent on enforcing his mandate at the point of a bayonet." (He declined to run again in 1832.) From 1833 to 1841 he was head of the South Carolina College, now known as the University of South Carolina, in

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

. Barnwell was appointed to the United States Senate after the death of Franklin H. Elmore on May 29, 1850. He served only from June until December, when after a special election Robert Barnwell Rhett replaced him. During this period the tenuous balance between the northern and southern Senators required such short-term appointments. His one distinction in the Senate involved the admission of California as a state. He opposed statehood in vain, but then had the good grace to introduce and present the credentials for one of her new senators, John C. Frémont. In 1861 Barnwell was a delegate to the

Provisional Congress held in

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...

. At the congress' first meeting on February 4, 1861, William P. Chilton moved that Barnwell be appointed to preside temporarily over the Congress until its permanent organization. The Congress approved that proposal, but later that day, Barnwell handed the office over to

Howell Cobb Howell Cobb (September 7, 1815 – October 9, 1868) was an American and later Confederate political figure. A southern Democrat, Cobb was a five-term member of the United States House of Representatives and the speaker of the House from 184 ...

. In that Congress, he cast the vote (February 9, 1861) that ensured the election of Jefferson Davis as the first and only

Confederate President The president of the Confederate States was the head of state and head of government of the Confederate States. The president was the chief executive of the federal government and was the commander-in-chief of the Confederate Army and the Confed ...

, and signed the

Confederate Constitution The Constitution of the Confederate States was the supreme law of the Confederate States of America. It was adopted on March 11, 1861, and was in effect from February 22, 1862, to the conclusion of the American Civil War (May 1865). The Confede ...

. He represented South Carolina in the Confederate Senate from 1862 until 1865. After 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 polic ...

, he returned to Columbia and the University as an instructor. He was the chairman of the faculty at the South Carolina College from 1866 until his removal in 1873, due to being seen as "an obstacle to the integration" of the college. He died in Columbia on November 5, 1882 but was buried in St. Helena's Churchyard back in Beaufort.

Legacy

The University of South Carolina's Barnwell College is named for Barnwell; in July 2021, the university's Presidential Commission on University History recommended removing his name from the college.

References

External links

* * Retrieved on 2009-04-29 {{DEFAULTSORT:Barnwell, Robert W. 1801 births 1882 deaths People from Beaufort, South Carolina American people of Irish descent Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from South Carolina Nullifier Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Carolina Democratic Party United States senators from South Carolina Deputies and delegates to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States Signers of the Provisional Constitution of the Confederate States Signers of the Confederate States Constitution Confederate States of America senators People of South Carolina in the American Civil War Democratic Party members of the South Carolina House of Representatives American planters American slave owners Harvard University alumni Presidents of the University of South Carolina United States senators who owned slaves

Biography

Legacy

See also

References

External links