John W. Stevenson, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

    

John W. Stevenson

American politician

Date of Birth: 04-May-1812

Place of Birth: Richmond, Virginia, United States

Date of Death: 10-Aug-1886

Profession: lawyer, politician

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Taurus


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About John W. Stevenson

  • John White Stevenson (May 4, 1812 – August 10, 1886) was the 25th governor of Kentucky and represented the state in both houses of the U.S.
  • Congress.
  • The son of future Speaker of the House and U.S.
  • diplomat Andrew Stevenson, John Stevenson graduated from the University of Virginia in 1832 and studied law under his cousin, future Congressman Willoughby Newton.
  • After briefly practicing law in Mississippi, he relocated to Covington, Kentucky, and was elected county attorney.
  • After serving in the Kentucky legislature, he was chosen as a delegate to the state's third constitutional convention in 1849 and was one of three commissioners charged with revising its code of laws, a task finished in 1854.
  • A Democrat, he was elected to two consecutive terms in the U.S.
  • House of Representatives where he supported several proposed compromises to avert the Civil War and blamed the Radical Republicans for their failure. After losing his reelection bid in 1861, Stevenson, a known Confederate sympathizer, stayed out of public life during the war and was consequently able to avoid being imprisoned, as many other Confederate sympathizers were.
  • In 1867, just five days after John L.
  • Helm and Stevenson were elected governor and lieutenant governor, respectively, Helm died and Stevenson became acting governor.
  • Stevenson subsequently won a special election in 1868 to finish Helm's term.
  • As governor, he opposed federal intervention in what he considered state matters but insisted that blacks' newly granted rights be observed and used the state militia to quell post-war violence in the state.
  • Although a fiscal conservative, he advocated a new tax to benefit education and created the state bureau of education. In 1871, Stevenson defeated incumbent Thomas C.
  • McCreery for his seat in the U.S.
  • Senate after criticizing McCreery for allegedly supporting the appointment of Stephen G.
  • Burbridge, who was hated by most Kentuckians, to a federal position.
  • In the Senate, he opposed internal improvements and defended a constructionist view of the constitution, resisting efforts to expand the powers expressly granted in that document.
  • Beginning in late 1873, Stephenson functioned as the first chairman (later called floor leader) of the Senate Democratic caucus.
  • He did not seek reelection in 1877, returning to his law practice and accepting future Kentucky Governor William Goebel as a law partner.
  • He chaired the 1880 Democratic National Convention and was elected president of the American Bar Association in 1884.
  • He died in Covington on August 10, 1886, and was buried in Spring Grove Cemetery at Cincinnati, Ohio.

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