Elza Jeffords (May 23, 1826 – March 19, 1885) was a

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from

Mississippi's 3rd congressional district Mississippi's 3rd congressional district (MS-3) covers central portions of state and stretches from the Louisiana border in the west to the Alabama border in the east. Large cities in the district include Meridian, Starkville, Pearl, and Natc ...

. Jeffords was born near Ironton in

Lawrence County, Ohio Lawrence County is the southernmost county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,240. Its county seat is Ironton. The county was created in 1815 and later organized in 1817. It is named for James Lawr ...

, on May 23, 1826. He grew up in

Portsmouth, Ohio Portsmouth is a city in and the county seat of Scioto County, Ohio, United States. Located in southern Ohio south of Chillicothe, it lies on the north bank of the Ohio River, across from Kentucky, just east of the mouth of the Scioto River. ...

, where he attended public schools before apprenticing as a clerk in a law office. Jeffords read law during his apprenticeship and was admitted to the bar in 1847. After his admission to the legal profession he practiced in Portmouth. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, Jeffords served as a clerk in the Quartermaster's Department of the

Army of the Tennessee An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

from June 1862 to December 1863. Following the war he moved to Mayersville,

Issaquena County, Mississippi Issaquena County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 1,406, making it the least populous county in the United States east of the Mississippi River. Its county seat is Mayersville. Wi ...

. On February 25, 1868, General

Alvan Cullem Gillem Alvan Cullem Gillem (July 29, 1830 – December 2, 1875) was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Although Southern-born, he remained loyal to the Federal government and fought in several battles in the Western Theater befor ...

, who had been given post-Civil War command over a region including Mississippi, named Jeffords to the state supreme court, along with Thomas Shackelford and Ephraim G. Peyton.Thomas H. Somerville, "A Sketch of the Supreme Court of Mississippi", in Horace W. Fuller, ed., '' The Green Bag'', Vol. XI (1899), p. 511. Leslie Southwick
Mississippi Supreme Court Elections: A Historical Perspective 1916-1996
18 Miss. C. L. Rev. 115 (1997-1998). He was a delegate to the

1872 Republican National Convention The 1872 Republican National Convention was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 5–6, 1872. President Ulysses S. Grant was unanimously nominated for reelection by the convention's 752 delegates. Massachusetts Senator Henry Wilson replaced s ...

, which renominated

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

. Jeffords was elected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to the

48th United States Congress The 48th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1883, ...

, carrying nearly 70% of the vote. He served a single term and was unsuccessful during his 1884 reelection campaign. Jeffords died on March 19, 1885, in

Vicksburg, Mississippi Vicksburg is a historic city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the county seat, and the population at the 2010 census was 23,856. Located on a high bluff on the east bank of the Mississippi River across from Louisiana, Vic ...

. He was interred at Cedar Hill Cemetery near Vicksburg. Eighty years passed before another Republican represented Mississippi in the U.S. House,

Prentiss Walker Prentiss Lafayette Walker (August 23, 1917 – June 5, 1998) was an American farmer, businessman, and politician from Mississippi. A staunch segregationist, in 1964 he became the first Republican to be elected to the United States House of Rep ...

of Mize in Smith County, represented the

4th district Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

for a single term from 1965 to 1967. He forfeited the seat to make an unsuccessful race against

U.S. Senator 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 powe ...

James O. Eastland James Oliver Eastland (November 28, 1904 February 19, 1986) was an American attorney, plantation owner, and politician from Mississippi. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, he served in the United States Senate in 1941 and again from 1 ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jeffords, Elza 1826 births 1885 deaths People from Ironton, Ohio People from Portsmouth, Ohio Ohio lawyers Mississippi lawyers Union Army soldiers People of Ohio in the American Civil War Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi 19th-century American politicians People from Mayersville, Mississippi 19th-century American lawyers Justices of the Mississippi Supreme Court