JAMES BARBOUR

'James Barbour' (June 10, 1775 – June 7,
1842) was an American lawyer, a
member and speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates, the 19th
Governor of Virginia, the first Governor to reside in the current
Virginia Governor's Mansion, a U.S. Senator from 1814-1825, and the
United States Secretary of War from 1825-1828.
Barbour was a renowned statesman and orator. His abilities to persuade
by speech were noted by several of his peers, including John Quincy
Adams. Barboursville, located in Orange County, Virginia was named
after James Barbour. The ruins of the Barbour mansion can be found in
the Madison-Barbour Rural Historic District. The mansion was designed
by James Barbour's friend, Thomas Jefferson.
Barbour County, Alabama is named in his honor. Barbour county in
West Virginia, as well as Barboursville, West Virginia and
Barbourville, Kentucky are all named in honor of James Barbour. He was
the brother of Philip Pendleton Barbour, as Speaker of the United
States House of Representatives and Associate Justice of the
Supreme Court as well as the first cousin of John S. Barbour and
first cousin, once removed of John S. Barbour, Jr..

Contents

Early Years

House of Delegates

Governor of Virginia

U.S. Senator

Secretary of War

Final years of service

Death

Further reading

External links

Early Years

James Barbour was born in Barboursville, Virginia in Orange County on June 10, 1775. Barbour was the son
of Midshipman Peter J. Kelly, who held a seat in the Virginia House
of Burgesses, and Mary Pendleton Thomas, both of Orange County,
Virginia. His family was one of the first to settle in Orange County,
which proved to be lucrative for the family. By the time of James’s
birth, the Barbour family owned over 2,000 acres (8 km²) and held
several slaves. Much of that wealth, however, dissipated before James
could acquire a formal education. James was educated, in part, at
Gordonsville, Virginia by James Waddell. He served as deputy sheriff of
Orange County, beginning in 1792. Shortly thereafter, in 1794, he was
admitted to the Virginia Bar. On October 29, 1792, Barbour married Lucy
Johnson, who was the daughter of Benjamin Johnson who served in the
House of Burgesses. With wedding gifts from his father, James was able
to slowly acquire his own personal wealth. By 1798, he owned several
slaves and was prepared to begin his own plantation.

House of Delegates

Barbour was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1796. He
was the youngest member of the House. During his tenure, Barbour was
known for his eloquent speech. He served on many committees in the
House and even as chairman on several committees, including the
Committee of Privileges and Elections and the Finance Committee. He
held the role of Speaker of the House of Delegates – a seat he held for
many terms.
During these years, Barbour held strong to his Virginian Republican
beliefs. He vigorously opposed the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798
and used his known skills in rhetoric to support the Virginia
Resolutions. Barbour believed the Acts and their supporters to be a
threat to the United States, stating “to make an expected attack from
abroad a pretext for attacking the principles of liberty at home has
drawn aside the curtain and clearly illuminated for all who are willing
to see.” Holding strong to the ideals on which the U.S. was formed,
Barbour refused to support any act he believed to give the Executive
unchecked powers. Among his acts in the House of Delegates, Barbour
believed his greatest to be the Act which provided for the Literary
Fund of Virginia. The Act, passed on February 2, 1810, provided funding
for public education in each county in the Commonwealth. Barbour
strongly believed society would progress only through education.
Barbour later requested that the only inscription on his tombstone be a
reference to this Act. Like many of his time, Barbour was a figure who
to the modern mind appears conflicted, if not hypocritical. While
believing society could progress through education, he also believed
intellectual abilities were connected with landownership.

Governor of Virginia

In 1811, Barbour declared his candidacy for the governorship. However,
Barbour lost to the incumbent governor, George William Smith
(politician). On December 26, 1811, Smith died in a fire at the
Richmond Theatre. On January 3, the Legislature convened and appointed
Barbour governor. At the time, the country was on the verge of war with
Britain. Barbour was in favor of the war, which he viewed as the only
means by which to end British interference with the sovereignty of the
U.S. As such, he began preparing the state for war. Barbour, whose
father had trained the Orange militia, was aware of the inadequacies of
Virginia’s militia. Accordingly, he sought appropriations for training
and arming a stronger militia on February 11, 1812. Barbour urged the
commanders of the militias from each county to prepare for defense of
the country. He personally toured the tidewater region, which offered
safe harbors for a British invasion. All of these acts earned Barbour
the title of “the war governor.” On June 18, 1812, Congress declared
war. So began the War of 1812. Perhaps because of his preparation
for war, Barbour was reelected Governor in November of 1812 without
opposition. However, by 1813, Barbour was opposed by those who believed
his strong policies of national unity were detrimental. Again, Barbour
was elected governor. During this final term in 1814, Barbour finally
convinced the Legislature to approve a plan of organizing 10,000 troops
to be selected for a militia under Federal control. However, the
Treaty of Ghent brought the war to an end.
Barbour’s governorship also included many other acts, including
exploration of the upper James River (Virginia). He received
funding to improve the roads of Virginia. He was also the first
Governor to inhabit the Virginia Governor’s Mansion, designed by
Thomas Jefferson, a friend of Barbour.
His contemporaries praised Barbour for his leadership. Barbour was
viewed as an effective leader, whose executive powers, while stronger
and more coherent than many of his predecessors, were adequately
utilized to protect Virginia. Barbour also received the praise of the
people of Virginia, who sent resolutions thanking the Governor for his
strong and apt leadership during the war.

U.S. Senator

On December 1, 1814, the Legislature of Virginia voted to appoint
Barbour as the successor to Richard Brent (Virginia) to the
United States Senate. Barbour, who had previously opposed its
formation, now voted in favor of a national Bank. Bill after bill
failed to pass or survive veto. President James Madison, fearing
bankruptcy, sought the assistance of his friend, James Barbour. Barbour
introduced into the Senate a bill composed by Secretary of the Treasury
Alexander James Dallas. This Bill, calling for $50,000,000 in
capital, passed. Interestingly, Barbour served in the Senate
contemporaneously with his brother Philip Pendleton Barbour, who served
in the House. Often, their votes opposed each other, as Barbour began
to vote in line with Senators such as John C. Calhoun and Henry
Clay. Barbour’s actions during his service as Senator include:
proposing a committee on roads and canals, advocate of the Bonus
Bill (authorizing spending the bonus from the bank on improvements),
proposing a Constitutional amendment granting Congress authority to
appropriate money for improvements, opposing efforts to reduce the
national army, supporting a bill abolishing imprisonment of debtors,
and introducing the Navigation Act of 1818. The Act closed U.S. ports
to any ships arriving from British ports closed to U.S. ships. Barbour
hoped the Act would encourage the British to open their ports, thus
promoting international trade. However, these efforts failed. Finally,
a compromise was reached in 1823, when the Elsewhere Act was passed
allowing for reciprocal trade.
Barbour was elected president pro tempore of the Senate in 1819. The
16th Congress, over which Barbour presided, decided on the Missouri
Compromise. Barbour sought to have the bill admitting Missouri
combined with the bill admitting Maine in an attempt to deny the
Northern Senators an opportunity to gain 4 anti-slavery Senators.
Barbour’s speech focused on the rights of the people of Missouri to
decide for themselves whether to be a free or slave state. Perhaps
foreseeing the future or perhaps merely engaging in his verbose nature,
Barbour stated “Sir, no portion of the Union has been more loyal than
the South. Is this your reward for our loyalty? Sir, there is a point
where resistance becomes a virtue and submission a crime. Our people
are as brave as they are loyal. They can endure anything but insult.
But the moment you pass that Rubicon, they will redeem their much
abused character and throw back upon you your insolence and your
aggression.” Over President Monroe’s advice, Barbour introduced his
motion to combine the two bills. Thus, a compromise was met – for
better or worse.
During his term of service, Barbour persuaded the Senate to pass a
resolution giving an honorary sword to Colonel R.M. Johnson of
Kentucky for his efforts in the Battle of the Thames in 1813.
Johnson and Barbour would become quick friends following Barbour’s
efforts. This friendship proved important for Barbour, who was
appointed Secretary of War by
President John Quincy Adams at the behest of Johnson.

Secretary of War

Barbour was confirmed as the Secretary of War following Adams’s
inauguration on March 4, 1825. The War Department’s main functions were
to oversee Indian affairs and manage the army. Barbour’s first ordeal
was dealing with Governor George Troup of Georgia, who wished the
government to remove Creek Indians from 5 million acres (20,000 km²) of
land. Adams signed a treaty approving the removal shortly after taking
office. Barbour, however, convinced Adams and Congress to abrogate the
treaty. Troup was irate. Following months of threats from Troup,
Barbour successfully purchased most of the land from the Creeks. Troup
was not happy and threatened to invade the lands the Indians retained
in the deal. Barbour and Adams agreed the federal government would need
to intervene should Georgia intervene. To avoid war, Barbour purchased
the remaining lands and prepared the Creek Indians for removal to lands
west of the Mississippi. Barbour proposed setting aside lands west of
the Mississippi for an Indian Territory. Those Indians who refused to
move onto these lands were to be assimilated into white society. He
hoped the tribal structure would dissipate, thus facilitating the
incorporation of the territory into the U.S. as a state. His proposal,
based on a misunderstanding of Indian culture and undoubtedly Western
beliefs on the progress of civilization, failed.

Final years of
service

In 1826, Barbour was considered for the vice-presidential nomination in
the upcoming 1828 elections. Barbour quickly opposed this. Instead,
Barbour sought an appointment as Minister to England. Critics claimed
Barbour was seeking a “harbor in the storm” from the approaching
election. Andrew Jackson, who was anti-nationalist, opposed the
ideals which Barbour supported. Barbour’s ministry was marked by
acceptance into European intellectual circles. On July 1, 1828, Barbour
was awarded the degree of LL.D. from the University of Oxford. After
his ministry, Barbour returned to Virginia, where he announced his
candidacy for the General Assembly. However, Barbour’s nationalistic
policies made him unfavorable to the Virginian Republicans. The
election, in which his opponent was an illiterate man, was extremely
close. Barbour narrowly escaped defeat. However, after he was declared
winner, the election was contested. Barbour promised to retire should
it prove that he in fact had lost the election. Although no such proof
was ever found, Barbour retired on February 16, 1831 due to the
hostility in the Assembly against him.

Death

After his retirement from the Assembly, Barbour sought refuge in his
family home at Barboursville. Barbour remained somewhat active in
political life, making appearances and giving speeches to support his
political friends. One such speech led an observer to declare “Gov.
Barbour presented an imposing appearance, with striking face, long,
shaggy eyebrows, and head covered with silvery flowing locks; with a
majestic and sonorous voice, he filled one’s conception of a Roman
Senator in the last days of the Republic.” Shortly thereafter,
Barbour’s health began to decline. His last months of life were spent
at Barboursville. However, on June 7, 1842, surrounded by his wife and
numerous children, Barbour died.

Further reading

★ Lowery, Charles; ''James Barbour, a Jeffersonian Repulican''; 1984,
University of Alabama Press; (2004 paperback: ISBN 0-8173-5076-4)

★ Long, William Stapleton; "James Barbour"

External links

★ biographic class=wikiexternal target=_blank>sketch at U.S. Congress website

★ Barboursville Community page