Williamson Robert Winfield Cobb (June 8, 1807 – November 1, 1864) was an American politician who served the state 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 ...

in the

U.S. 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 ...

between 1847 and 1861.

Biography

He was born in

Rhea County, Tennessee Rhea County (pronounced ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,870. Its county seat is Dayton. Rhea County comprises the Dayton, TN Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also incl ...

on June 8, 1807 to David Cobb and Martha Bryant. He moved with his father, David Cobb, in 1809 to Bellefonte,

Jackson County, Alabama Jackson County is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 52,579. The county seat is Scottsboro. The county was named for Andrew Jackson, general in the United States Army and afterw ...

. Cobb received a limited education and worked as a clock peddler and merchant in Bellefonte before being elected to the Alabama House of Representatives in 1844. In 1846 he 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 U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama's sixth congressional district, which then included Huntsville and the mountainous counties of northeast Alabama, including Cobb's home county of Jackson, carved out of Madison in 1819. Cobb was reelected to six additional terms, consistently defeating more affluent, better educated opponents from Huntsville, including

Clement Claiborne Clay Clement Claiborne Clay (December 13, 1816 – January 3, 1882), also known as C. C. Clay Jr., was a United States Senator (Democrat) from the state of Alabama from 1853 to 1861, and a Confederate States senator from Alabama from 1862 to 1864. Hi ...

, by the majority vote of the plain folk of the hill country. Despite owning slaves himself, Cobb ran on an anti-elite platform which garnered support among poor and disenfranchised people. Cobb was a strong Unionist and opponent of

secession Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics le ...

, and when Alabama did secede in 1861, he withdrew from Congress only reluctantly. He ran unsuccessfully for the Confederate House of Representatives in 1861, but was elected to the

Second Confederate Congress The 2nd Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, met from May 2, 1864, to March 18, 1865, during the last year of Jefferson Davis's presidency, at the Virginia ...

in 1863 amid growing antiwar sentiment. He however did not arrive to take his seat, and was subsequently expelled by a unanimous vote for his avowed Unionist sentiments. Cobb was killed by the accidental discharge of his own pistol while putting up a fence on his plantation near Bellefonte on November 1, 1864. He was buried in the family cemetery on the estate of his brother, Bryant Anderson Cobb, in neighboring Madison County.

Expulsion by the Confederate House

On May 3, 1864, the Confederate House created a committee of 5 to investigate charges against Cobb. After Cobb's death, the House voted 75 to 0 in favor of expelling Cobb (November 17, 1864). The resolution appears to have been made without knowledge, or even in spite of, Cobb's demise. It charged him with failing to claim his seat in the House, "being behind enemy lines on terms of friendly intercourse", and "manifesting his disloyalty to the Confederate States."

Notes

References

Retrieved on 2009-04-14

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cobb, Williamson Robert Winfield 1807 births 1864 deaths Democratic Party members of the Alabama House of Representatives Members of the Confederate House of Representatives from Alabama People from Jackson County, Alabama People from Rhea County, Tennessee Firearm accident victims in the United States Deaths by firearm in Alabama Accidental deaths in Alabama Alabama Unionists Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama Southern Unionists in the American Civil War 19th-century American politicians