John Black (Mississippi politician)

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John Black (August 11, 1800 – August 29, 1854) was a politician from the U.S. state of Mississippi, most notably serving in the United States Senate as a Whig from 1832 to 1838.

John Black
United States Senator
from Mississippi
In office
November 12, 1832 – March 3, 1833 – November 22, 1833 – January 22, 1838
Preceded byPowhatan Ellis
Succeeded byJames F. Trotter
Personal details
BornAugust 11, 1800
Massachusetts
DiedAugust 29, 1854 (aged 54)
Winchester, Virginia, U.S.
Political partyWhig

Biography

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Black was born in Massachusetts,[1] and became a teacher. He then moved to Louisiana, where he practiced law. After moving to Mississippi, he was elected a judge in 1826, eventually being elected to the Mississippi Supreme Court.[1][2] In 1832, Governor Charles Lynch appointed him as a Jacksonian, the forerunner of the modern Democratic Party, to fill the United States Senate vacancy left by Powhatan Ellis. He ran for the seat in his own right as an anti-Jacksonian (later Whig) and served from November 22, 1833 to January 22, 1838, when he resigned.

During his time in office, he served as the chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Private Lands. After leaving the Senate, he moved to Winchester, Virginia, where he resumed practicing law until his death.

Like many southern United States politicians of his day, Black was a slave owner.[3]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Thomas H. Somerville, "A Sketch of the Supreme Court of Mississippi", in Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. XI (1899), p. 507.
  2. ^ Franklin Lafayette Riley, School History of Mississippi: For Use in Public and Private Schools (1915), p. 380-82.
  3. ^ "Congress slaveowners", The Washington Post, 2022-01-27, retrieved 2022-01-31
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U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 1) from Mississippi
November 12, 1832 – March 3, 1833
(Legislature failed to elect.)
November 22, 1833 – January 22, 1838
Served alongside: George Poindexter, Robert J. Walker
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi
1826–1832
Succeeded by