Luke Lea (January 21, 1783 – June 17, 1851) was a two-term

United States Representative 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 ...

from

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

Biography

Lea was born in

Surry County, North Carolina Surry County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 71,359. Its county seat is Dobson, and its largest community is Mount Airy. Surry county comprises the Mount Airy, NC Micropol ...

, the son of the Reverend Luke and Elisabeth Wilson Lea. He moved with his parents in 1790 into what would become

Hawkins County, Tennessee Hawkins County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 56,721. Its county seat is Rogersville. Hawkins County is part of the Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a component of the J ...

. He attended the common school, and as a young man he was a clerk for the

Tennessee House of Representatives The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee. Constitutional requirements According to the state constitution of 1870, this body is to consis ...

from 1804 to 1806. He married Susan Wells McCormick on February 28, 1816, and they had nine children. He was also the great-grandfather of Luke Lea, founder of the ''

Nashville Tennessean ''The Tennessean'' (known until 1972 as ''The Nashville Tennessean'') is a daily newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee. Its circulation area covers 39 counties in Middle Tennessee and eight counties in southern Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett, w ...

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

and a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

from Tennessee from 1911 to 1917. He owned slaves.

Career

After commanding a

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

under General

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

in the Seminole and Creek War of 1818, Lee then moved to Campbells Station,

Knox County, Tennessee Knox County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. The population was 500,669 as of a 2023 estimate, making it the third-most populous county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Knoxville, which is the third-most populous city in Te ...

. He was elected as a Jacksonian to the 23rd Congress and re-elected as an Anti-Jacksonian to the

24th Congress The 24th 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, 1835, ...

. He served from March 4, 1833, to March 3, 1837. He changed

parties A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

for his second term from Jacksonian to

National Republican The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a political party in the United States which evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John ...

. He then served as

Tennessee Secretary of State The Tennessee Secretary of State is an office created by the Tennessee State Constitution. The Secretary of State is responsible for many of the administrative aspects of the operation of the state government of Tennessee. The current Secretar ...

from 1837 to 1839. On September 9, 1850, Lea was appointed Indian agent by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Millard Fillmore Millard Fillmore (January 7, 1800 – March 8, 1874) was the 13th president of the United States, serving from 1850 to 1853. He was the last president to be a member of the Whig Party while in the White House, and the last to be neither a De ...

for

Fort Leavenworth, Kansas Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...

, and served in that capacity some sources say until his death the following year. Other sources show he continued to live in the District of Columbia and later returned to Mississippi and died in Vicksburg in 1898.

Death

Thrown from his horse on his way back to his residence near Fort Leavenworth, Lea died on June 17, 1851, at age 68. He was first

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and object ...

at Westport Cemetery,

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

; and is finally

at Union Cemetery, Kansas City. Lea was the brother of

Pryor Lea Pryor Lea (August 31, 1794 – September 14, 1879) was an American politician and railroad entrepreneur who represented Tennessee's 2nd district in the United States House of Representatives from 1827 to 1831. He moved to Goliad, Texas, in th ...

, a two-term Tennessee Congressman (1827–31), who was later a Texas state senator and a prominent

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 ...

supporter in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lea, Luke 1783 births 1851 deaths People from Surry County, North Carolina Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee Tennessee Whigs Secretaries of state of Tennessee Clerks People from Hawkins County, Tennessee United States Army officers Military personnel from North Carolina American military personnel of the Indian Wars Members of the United States House of Representatives who owned slaves 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives