James Gordon (Mississippi politician)

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James Gordon


United States Senator from Mississippi
In office December 23, 1909 – February 22, 1910
Appointed by	Edmond Noel
Preceded by	Anselm J. McLaurin
Succeeded by	LeRoy Percy

Personal details
Born	(1833-12-06)December 6, 1833 Cotton Gin Port, Mississippi
Died	November 28, 1912(1912-11-28) (aged 78) Okolona, Mississippi
Political party	Democratic

James Gordon (December 6, 1833 – November 28, 1912) was an American planter, writer, former Confederate officer and politician from Okolona, Mississippi. He was a United States senator for eight weeks, from December 27, 1909, to February 22, 1910.

During the Civil War he served in the Confederate Army, first as a captain in the Chickasaw Guards, attached to the Jeff. Davis Legion, and then as Lieutenant Colonel of the 2nd Mississippi Cavalry Regiment,^[1] and later served in the Mississippi House of Representatives. Following the death of Senator Anselm J. McLaurin, Gordon was appointed by Governor Edmond Noel on December 27, to fill the vacancy until the state legislature could elect a new U.S. Senator.

The day after his appointment by Governor Noel to the United States Senate, Gordon was identified by the Memphis Press-Scimitar as a former fugitive who had been sought as a suspect in the conspiracy to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. Gordon was listed in 1865 by the United States government as a fugitive, and a reward of $10,000 had been offered for his capture, dead or alive. Later that year, he was ruled out of the suspects.^[2] Gordon had admitted that he had met with John Wilkes Booth in Montreal in March 1865, and had discussed plans to kidnap Lincoln, but denied any discussion of an assassination.^[3]

Gordon served as an appointed U.S. Senator, until February 22, 1910, when he was succeeded by LeRoy Percy, who had been elected by the legislature. he died in 1912 at 78.

References

^ Tutor, Forrest T. (2008). Gordons of Lochinvar. Lulu.com. pp. 22–46. ISBN 978-0-557-00076-0.
^ "New Senator Once Fugitive", New York Times, December 29, 1909, p1
^ William A. Tidwell, Come Retribution: The Confederate Secret Service and the Assassination of Lincoln (University Press of Mississippi, 1988), pp405-410

External links

United States Congress. "GORDON, James (id: G000312)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.

U.S. Senate
Preceded by Anselm J. McLaurin	Class 2 U.S. Senator from Mississippi December 27, 1909 – February 23, 1910	Succeeded by LeRoy Percy

v t e United States senators from Mississippi
Class 1	Leake Holmes Ellis Reed Ellis Black Trotter T. Hickman Williams Henderson Speight Davis McRae S. Adams Davis Ames Pease Bruce George Money J. Williams Stephens Bilbo Stennis Lott Wicker
Class 2	T. Hill Williams Reed R. Adams Poindexter Walker Chalmers Foote Brooke Brown Revels Alcorn Lamar Walthall McLaurin Walthall Sullivan McLaurin Gordon Percy Vardaman Harrison Eastland Doxey Eastland Cochran Hyde-Smith

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