Charles S. Morehead
Encyclopedia
Charles Slaughter Morehead (July 7, 1802 December 21, 1868) was a U.S. Representative
from Kentucky
, and served as the 20th Governor of Kentucky
. Though a member of the Whig Party
for most of his political service, he joined the Know Nothing, or American, Party in 1855, and was the only governor of Kentucky ever elected from that party.
Morehead's political service began in the Kentucky House of Representatives
in 1828. In 1832, he was appointed state attorney general
. He served in this capacity for five years, and later returned to the Kentucky House, where he was chosen Speaker of the House three times. He was elected to Congress in 1848 and served two terms. After his congressional tenure, he joined the Know Nothing Party and was chosen as the party's candidate for governor in 1855. The campaign was marred by anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic rhetoric that touched off the "Bloody Monday
" riots in Louisville
.
Morehead was a delegate to the Peace Conference of 1861
and the Border States Convention that attempted to stave off the Civil War
. Although he favored Kentucky's neutrality, Morehead sympathized with the South and was an open critic of the Lincoln
administration. He was imprisoned for disloyalty in September 1861, although no formal charges were ever brought against him. He was released from prison in January 1862, and afterward fled to Canada, Europe, and Mexico
. After the war, he returned to the United States and settled on his plantation in Greenville, Mississippi
, where he died on December 21, 1868.
, Nelson County, Kentucky
on July 7, 1802. He was the son of Charles and Margaret (Slaughter) Morehead and a first cousin to Kentucky's twelfth governor, James Turner Morehead. His father served in both houses of the Kentucky General Assembly
.
Morehead was educated in the area's public schools, then matriculated to Transylvania University. He earned a bachelor’s degree in 1820, graduating with honors. After graduation, he became a tutor at the university and earned a Bachelor of Laws
degree in 1822. He relocated to Christian County, Kentucky
, was admitted to the bar
, and commenced practice in Hopkinsville
. He also worked as a farmer, and owned plantation
s in Mississippi
and Louisiana
.
Morehead married Amanda Leavy on July 10, 1823. She died July 5, 1829 at the age of twenty-five. Following her death, Morehead married Margaret Leavy, his first wife's sister, on September 6, 1831. Together they had four children. Charles and Margaret were very fond of music, theater, dances, and parties.
to the Kentucky House of Representatives in 1828 and was re-elected in 1829. Following his second term in the legislature, he moved to Frankfort, Kentucky
, believing it provided better opportunities for his legal practice. He was appointed as state attorney general in 1832 and served for five years. In 1834, he co-authored A Digest of the Statute Laws of Kentucky with Mason Brown. He represented Franklin County in the state house from 1838 to 1842 and again in 1844; he was chosen Speaker of the House in 1840, 1841, and 1844.
Morehead was elected the Thirtieth and Thirty-first Congresses, serving from March 4, 1847 until March 3, 1851. During the Thirty-first Congress, the Whig caucus considered him as a candidate for Speaker of the House. The voting for speaker began December 3, 1849. The caucus first chose Robert C. Winthrop as their candidate, but after several ballots, Winthrop was still unable to obtain a majority because of sectional rivalries within the caucus. Some Whigs from northern states voted for David Wilmot
, a Free Soiler
, while five southern Whigs steadfastly voted for Meredith Gentry
. The Democrats
were similarly unable to muster a majority for their candidate, Howell Cobb
.
At their caucus meeting on the night of December 10, the Whigs agreed to continue voting for Winthrop for one more day, and if he was not elected, to switch their support to Morehead, who they believed could hold all of Winthrop's votes and win the votes of the southern Whigs as well as some southern Democrats. They made their intentions known on December 11, and by the end of the day, Morehead reported that he had received commitments of support from twenty southern Democrats. During the day's voting, the five southern Whigs shifted their support from Gentry to Morehead. This shift cost Morehead the support of many northern Whigs who, at the caucus meeting the night of December 11, declared that Morehead's election "would ruin the Whig party in the North", especially if he gained the support of southern Democrats. Rather than further fracture the caucus, Morehead withdrew his name from consideration. Cobb was finally elected on the sixty-third ballot on December 22.
for Winfield Scott
, and in 1853, he served another term in the Kentucky House. By early 1855, sectional divisions had ripped apart the national Whig Party. In Kentucky, many former Whigs associated with the Know Nothing Party. Morehead was among these; he claimed that the Know Nothing Party was more "Union" than the Democratic Party. The ex-Whigs hoped to take over the Know Nothing Party and reshape it into a Unionist Whig organization. Accordingly, when the Know Nothing candidate for governor, Judge William Loving, withdrew from the race due to failing health, the influx of ex-Whigs nominated Morehead to replace him for the gubernatorial election of 1855. Prior to the dissolution of the party, most had expected the Whigs would nominate Morehead at their own party's convention in April.
Though Kentucky had only a small population of immigrants and Catholics, much of Morehead's campaign oratory was directed against these groups. Most of the state's immigrant and Catholic population resided in Louisville, and tensions there reached a climax with an anti-foreign riot known as "Bloody Monday" on August 6, 1855. Morehead won the election with 69,816 votes to 65,413 votes for Democrat Beverly L. Clarke
. In his inaugural address, Morehead denounced the nullification
of the Fugitive Slave Act and despite his campaign rhetoric, proclaimed "perfect equality" for naturalized citizens.
Morehead's term as governor was an active one. He approved the appropriation of funding for the first Kentucky State Fair, which was seen as a vehicle for encouraging improvements in agriculture. He also approved the formation of the Kentucky State Agricultural Society in 1856. The state geological survey begun under Governor Lazarus W. Powell
was completed and published. Internal improvements
progressed as well; railroad mileage in the state increased from 242 miles to 568 miles during Morehead's term.
Kentucky's school system was expanding rapidly, creating a shortage of qualified teachers in the state; Morehead responded to this need by proposing a bill for state-supported teacher education program at Transylvania University. The state's superintendent, John D. Matthews, lobbied for the bill, claiming that a failure to educate teachers in Kentucky would result in Northern teachers infiltrating the state and corrupting children's minds. The bill passed in 1856, and Transylvania University made the transition from a private institution to a state-supported university. Money raised through school taxes, previously regarded as revenue by the legislature, was diverted to support of Transylvania. Although the teacher education program enrolled seventy-five students, opposition to the plan developed soon after its passage. Many citizens felt that public school money should not be used to support higher education. Governor Morehead defended the plan, but when the legislature convened two years later, it revoked the university's funding.
The number of prisoners housed in the state penitentiary at Frankfort was also increasing. By 1856, 237 prisoners were detained in the facility which had only 126 cells. Though state law required solitary confinement
at night, the statute was impossible to administer due to the space constraints. Morehead cooperated with the legislature and developed a plan to expand the penitentiary to 252 cells. He also renegotiated the state's contract with the warden that was more favorable to the state, and allowed the warden to collect income from convict labor.
Early in his term, Morehead approved two new bank charters, but he later vetoed several others, beginning with the proposed Bank of Harrodsburg
. Many other proposed bank charters died in the General Assembly. The later years of Morehead's administration were hindered by the financial Panic of 1857. In December 1857, he reported state expenditures of $21,000 for relief of the poor.
for cutting off trade with the South.
On September 19, 1861, Morehead, Louisville Courier editor Reuben T. Durrett, and a man named Martin W. Barr were arrested for disloyalty. The three were taken to Indianapolis
, Indiana, and the next day, Louisville circuit court
judge John Catron
issued a writ of habeas corpus
for Morehead. On September 24, the officer who had arrested Morehead told Catron that Secretary of War
Simon Cameron
had already ordered Morehead taken to Fort Lafayette
in New York Harbor
. Shortly after this, a grand jury
was convened but failed to return any charges against Morehead.
Morehead was later transferred to Fort Warren
in Boston Harbor
. He complained to his captors about the conditions in the prison; specifically, the difficulty of writing letters when confined with nine other men in a room that measured just ten feet by twenty feet. Petitions for Morehead's release were delivered to President Lincoln, but Lincoln told Secretary of State Seward that Morehead and those arrested with them would be released "when James Guthrie and James Speed
[friends of Lincoln's in Kentucky] think they should be". Later, Guthrie told Lincoln that Morehead's arrest had "not been beneficial" to their cause in Kentucky. Morehead was paroled on January 6, 1862, on the condition that he swear an oath not to take part in the Confederate
insurgence. On March 19, 1862, he was unconditionally discharged from his parole.
Morehead returned to his home in Louisville, but feared his refusal to take an oath of allegiance to the Constitution
would lead to another arrest. In June 1862, he fled to Canada, then to Europe, and finally to Mexico. Following the war, Morehead returned to the United States and lived on his plantation in Greenville, Mississippi. He died there on December 21, 1868 and was buried on the grounds. On May 31, 1879, he was reburied in the Frankfort Cemetery
in Frankfort, Kentucky.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, and served as the 20th Governor of Kentucky
Governor of Kentucky
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once...
. Though a member of the Whig Party
Whig Party (United States)
The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...
for most of his political service, he joined the Know Nothing, or American, Party in 1855, and was the only governor of Kentucky ever elected from that party.
Morehead's political service began in the Kentucky House of Representatives
Kentucky House of Representatives
The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a House district, except when necessary to preserve...
in 1828. In 1832, he was appointed state attorney general
Attorney General of Kentucky
The Attorney General of Kentucky is an office created by the Kentucky Constitution. . Under Kentucky law, he serves several roles, including the state's chief prosecutor , the state's chief law enforcement officer , and the state's chief law officer...
. He served in this capacity for five years, and later returned to the Kentucky House, where he was chosen Speaker of the House three times. He was elected to Congress in 1848 and served two terms. After his congressional tenure, he joined the Know Nothing Party and was chosen as the party's candidate for governor in 1855. The campaign was marred by anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic rhetoric that touched off the "Bloody Monday
Bloody Monday
Bloody Monday was the name given the election riots of August 6, 1855, in Louisville, Kentucky. These riots grew out of the bitter rivalry between the Democrats and supporters of the Know-Nothing Party. Rumors were started that foreigners and Catholics had interfered with the process of voting...
" riots in Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
.
Morehead was a delegate to the Peace Conference of 1861
Peace conference of 1861
The Peace Conference of 1861 was a meeting of more than 100 of the leading politicians of the antebellum United States held in Washington, D.C., in February 1861 that was meant to prevent what ultimately became the Civil War. The success of President Abraham Lincoln and the Republican Party in the...
and the Border States Convention that attempted to stave off the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Although he favored Kentucky's neutrality, Morehead sympathized with the South and was an open critic of the Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
administration. He was imprisoned for disloyalty in September 1861, although no formal charges were ever brought against him. He was released from prison in January 1862, and afterward fled to Canada, Europe, and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. After the war, he returned to the United States and settled on his plantation in Greenville, Mississippi
Greenville, Mississippi
Greenville is a city in Washington County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 48,633 at the 2000 census, but according to the 2009 census bureau estimates, it has since declined to 42,764, making it the eighth-largest city in the state. It is the county seat of Washington...
, where he died on December 21, 1868.
Early life
Charles Slaughter Morehead was born near BardstownBardstown, Kentucky
As of the census of 2010, there were 11,700 people, 4,712 households, and 2,949 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,113 housing units at an average density of...
, Nelson County, Kentucky
Nelson County, Kentucky
Nelson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2010, the population was 43,437. Its county seat is Bardstown. The county is part of the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY–IN Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
on July 7, 1802. He was the son of Charles and Margaret (Slaughter) Morehead and a first cousin to Kentucky's twelfth governor, James Turner Morehead. His father served in both houses of the Kentucky General Assembly
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky.The General Assembly meets annually in the state capitol building in Frankfort, Kentucky, convening on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January...
.
Morehead was educated in the area's public schools, then matriculated to Transylvania University. He earned a bachelor’s degree in 1820, graduating with honors. After graduation, he became a tutor at the university and earned a Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...
degree in 1822. He relocated to Christian County, Kentucky
Christian County, Kentucky
Christian County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1797. As of 2000, its population was 72,265. Its county seat is Hopkinsville, Kentucky...
, was admitted to the bar
Bar (law)
Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...
, and commenced practice in Hopkinsville
Hopkinsville, Kentucky
Hopkinsville is a city in Christian County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 31,577 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Christian County.- History :...
. He also worked as a farmer, and owned plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
s in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
and Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
.
Morehead married Amanda Leavy on July 10, 1823. She died July 5, 1829 at the age of twenty-five. Following her death, Morehead married Margaret Leavy, his first wife's sister, on September 6, 1831. Together they had four children. Charles and Margaret were very fond of music, theater, dances, and parties.
Political career
Morehead was elected as a WhigWhig Party (United States)
The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...
to the Kentucky House of Representatives in 1828 and was re-elected in 1829. Following his second term in the legislature, he moved to Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort is a city in Kentucky that serves as the state capital and the county seat of Franklin County. The population was 27,741 at the 2000 census; by population it is the 5th smallest state capital in the United States...
, believing it provided better opportunities for his legal practice. He was appointed as state attorney general in 1832 and served for five years. In 1834, he co-authored A Digest of the Statute Laws of Kentucky with Mason Brown. He represented Franklin County in the state house from 1838 to 1842 and again in 1844; he was chosen Speaker of the House in 1840, 1841, and 1844.
Morehead was elected the Thirtieth and Thirty-first Congresses, serving from March 4, 1847 until March 3, 1851. During the Thirty-first Congress, the Whig caucus considered him as a candidate for Speaker of the House. The voting for speaker began December 3, 1849. The caucus first chose Robert C. Winthrop as their candidate, but after several ballots, Winthrop was still unable to obtain a majority because of sectional rivalries within the caucus. Some Whigs from northern states voted for David Wilmot
David Wilmot
David Wilmot was a U.S. political figure. He was a sponsor and eponym of the Wilmot Proviso which aimed to ban slavery in land gained from Mexico in the Mexican-American War of 1846–1848. Wilmot was a Democrat, a Free Soiler, and a Republican during his political career...
, a Free Soiler
Free Soil Party
The Free Soil Party was a short-lived political party in the United States active in the 1848 and 1852 presidential elections, and in some state elections. It was a third party and a single-issue party that largely appealed to and drew its greatest strength from New York State. The party leadership...
, while five southern Whigs steadfastly voted for Meredith Gentry
Meredith Poindexter Gentry
Meredith Poindexter Gentry was an American politician who represented Tennessee's eighth and seventh districts in the United States House of Representatives. He also served in the Confederate States Congress during the American Civil War.-Biography:Gentry was born in Rockingham County, North...
. The Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
were similarly unable to muster a majority for their candidate, Howell Cobb
Howell Cobb
Howell Cobb was an American political figure. A Southern Democrat, Cobb was a five-term member of the United States House of Representatives and Speaker of the House from 1849 to 1851...
.
At their caucus meeting on the night of December 10, the Whigs agreed to continue voting for Winthrop for one more day, and if he was not elected, to switch their support to Morehead, who they believed could hold all of Winthrop's votes and win the votes of the southern Whigs as well as some southern Democrats. They made their intentions known on December 11, and by the end of the day, Morehead reported that he had received commitments of support from twenty southern Democrats. During the day's voting, the five southern Whigs shifted their support from Gentry to Morehead. This shift cost Morehead the support of many northern Whigs who, at the caucus meeting the night of December 11, declared that Morehead's election "would ruin the Whig party in the North", especially if he gained the support of southern Democrats. Rather than further fracture the caucus, Morehead withdrew his name from consideration. Cobb was finally elected on the sixty-third ballot on December 22.
Governor of Kentucky
Following his congressional tenure, Morehead resumed his law practice and management of his plantations. In 1852, he was a presidential electorUnited States Electoral College
The Electoral College consists of the electors appointed by each state who formally elect the President and Vice President of the United States. Since 1964, there have been 538 electors in each presidential election...
for Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott was a United States Army general, and unsuccessful presidential candidate of the Whig Party in 1852....
, and in 1853, he served another term in the Kentucky House. By early 1855, sectional divisions had ripped apart the national Whig Party. In Kentucky, many former Whigs associated with the Know Nothing Party. Morehead was among these; he claimed that the Know Nothing Party was more "Union" than the Democratic Party. The ex-Whigs hoped to take over the Know Nothing Party and reshape it into a Unionist Whig organization. Accordingly, when the Know Nothing candidate for governor, Judge William Loving, withdrew from the race due to failing health, the influx of ex-Whigs nominated Morehead to replace him for the gubernatorial election of 1855. Prior to the dissolution of the party, most had expected the Whigs would nominate Morehead at their own party's convention in April.
Though Kentucky had only a small population of immigrants and Catholics, much of Morehead's campaign oratory was directed against these groups. Most of the state's immigrant and Catholic population resided in Louisville, and tensions there reached a climax with an anti-foreign riot known as "Bloody Monday" on August 6, 1855. Morehead won the election with 69,816 votes to 65,413 votes for Democrat Beverly L. Clarke
Beverly L. Clarke
Beverly Leonidas Clarke was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky.Born in Winterfield, Virginia, Clarke attended the common schools. He moved to Kentucky in 1823. He studied law in Franklin, Kentucky, and graduated from the Lexington Law School in 1831. He was admitted to the bar in 1833 and...
. In his inaugural address, Morehead denounced the nullification
Nullification (U.S. Constitution)
Nullification is a legal theory that a State has the right to nullify, or invalidate, any federal law which that state has deemed unconstitutional...
of the Fugitive Slave Act and despite his campaign rhetoric, proclaimed "perfect equality" for naturalized citizens.
Morehead's term as governor was an active one. He approved the appropriation of funding for the first Kentucky State Fair, which was seen as a vehicle for encouraging improvements in agriculture. He also approved the formation of the Kentucky State Agricultural Society in 1856. The state geological survey begun under Governor Lazarus W. Powell
Lazarus W. Powell
Lazarus Whitehead Powell was the 19th Governor of Kentucky, serving from 1851 to 1855. He was later elected to represent Kentucky in the U.S. Senate from 1859 to 1865....
was completed and published. Internal improvements
Internal improvements
Internal improvements is the term used historically in the United States for public works from the end of the American Revolution through much of the 19th century, mainly for the creation of a transportation infrastructure: roads, turnpikes, canals, harbors and navigation improvements...
progressed as well; railroad mileage in the state increased from 242 miles to 568 miles during Morehead's term.
Kentucky's school system was expanding rapidly, creating a shortage of qualified teachers in the state; Morehead responded to this need by proposing a bill for state-supported teacher education program at Transylvania University. The state's superintendent, John D. Matthews, lobbied for the bill, claiming that a failure to educate teachers in Kentucky would result in Northern teachers infiltrating the state and corrupting children's minds. The bill passed in 1856, and Transylvania University made the transition from a private institution to a state-supported university. Money raised through school taxes, previously regarded as revenue by the legislature, was diverted to support of Transylvania. Although the teacher education program enrolled seventy-five students, opposition to the plan developed soon after its passage. Many citizens felt that public school money should not be used to support higher education. Governor Morehead defended the plan, but when the legislature convened two years later, it revoked the university's funding.
The number of prisoners housed in the state penitentiary at Frankfort was also increasing. By 1856, 237 prisoners were detained in the facility which had only 126 cells. Though state law required solitary confinement
Solitary confinement
Solitary confinement is a special form of imprisonment in which a prisoner is isolated from any human contact, though often with the exception of members of prison staff. It is sometimes employed as a form of punishment beyond incarceration for a prisoner, and has been cited as an additional...
at night, the statute was impossible to administer due to the space constraints. Morehead cooperated with the legislature and developed a plan to expand the penitentiary to 252 cells. He also renegotiated the state's contract with the warden that was more favorable to the state, and allowed the warden to collect income from convict labor.
Early in his term, Morehead approved two new bank charters, but he later vetoed several others, beginning with the proposed Bank of Harrodsburg
Harrodsburg, Kentucky
Harrodsburg is a city in and the county seat of Mercer County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 8,014 at the 2000 census. It is the oldest city in Kentucky.-History:...
. Many other proposed bank charters died in the General Assembly. The later years of Morehead's administration were hindered by the financial Panic of 1857. In December 1857, he reported state expenditures of $21,000 for relief of the poor.
Civil War and later life
Morehead moved to Louisville in 1859 and formed a law partnership with his nephew, Charles M. Briggs. In February 1861, he attended the Peace Conference of 1861 that tried to resolve the sectional differences between the states. In May 1861, he was chosen as a delegate to the Border State Convention, an ultimately futile attempt to avert the Civil War. Morehead refused to sign the final document produced by the convention because he did not agree with all the statements it contained. He was an advocate of Kentucky's position of neutrality, but was personally sympathetic to the South and was an outspoken critic of the Lincoln administration. He condemned Secretary of State William H. SewardWilliam H. Seward
William Henry Seward, Sr. was the 12th Governor of New York, United States Senator and the United States Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson...
for cutting off trade with the South.
On September 19, 1861, Morehead, Louisville Courier editor Reuben T. Durrett, and a man named Martin W. Barr were arrested for disloyalty. The three were taken to Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Indiana, and the next day, Louisville circuit court
Circuit court
Circuit court is the name of court systems in several common law jurisdictions.-History:King Henry II instituted the custom of having judges ride around the countryside each year to hear appeals, rather than forcing everyone to bring their appeals to London...
judge John Catron
John Catron
John Catron was an American jurist who served as a US Supreme Court justice from 1837 to 1865.-Early life:Little is known of Catron's early life, but he served in the War of 1812 under Andrew Jackson...
issued a writ of habeas corpus
Habeas corpus
is a writ, or legal action, through which a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. The remedy can be sought by the prisoner or by another person coming to his aid. Habeas corpus originated in the English legal system, but it is now available in many nations...
for Morehead. On September 24, the officer who had arrested Morehead told Catron that Secretary of War
United States Secretary of War
The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...
Simon Cameron
Simon Cameron
Simon Cameron was an American politician who served as United States Secretary of War for Abraham Lincoln at the start of the American Civil War. After making his fortune in railways and banking, he turned to a life of politics. He became a U.S. senator in 1845 for the state of Pennsylvania,...
had already ordered Morehead taken to Fort Lafayette
Fort Lafayette
Fort Lafayette was an island coastal fortification in the Narrows of New York Harbor, built offshore from Fort Hamilton at the southern tip of what is now Bay Ridge in the New York City borough of Brooklyn...
in New York Harbor
New York Harbor
New York Harbor refers to the waterways of the estuary near the mouth of the Hudson River that empty into New York Bay. It is one of the largest natural harbors in the world. Although the U.S. Board of Geographic Names does not use the term, New York Harbor has important historical, governmental,...
. Shortly after this, a grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
was convened but failed to return any charges against Morehead.
Morehead was later transferred to Fort Warren
Fort Warren (Massachusetts)
Fort Warren is a historic fort on the Georges Island at the entrance to Boston Harbor. The fort is pentagonal, made with stone and granite, and was constructed from 1833–1861, completed shortly after the beginning of the American Civil War...
in Boston Harbor
Boston Harbor
Boston Harbor is a natural harbor and estuary of Massachusetts Bay, and is located adjacent to the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Port of Boston, a major shipping facility in the northeast.-History:...
. He complained to his captors about the conditions in the prison; specifically, the difficulty of writing letters when confined with nine other men in a room that measured just ten feet by twenty feet. Petitions for Morehead's release were delivered to President Lincoln, but Lincoln told Secretary of State Seward that Morehead and those arrested with them would be released "when James Guthrie and James Speed
James Speed
James Speed was an American lawyer, politician and professor. In 1864, he was appointed by Abraham Lincoln to be the United States' Attorney General. He previously served in the Kentucky Legislature, and in local political office.Speed was born in Jefferson County, Kentucky, to Judge John Speed...
[friends of Lincoln's in Kentucky] think they should be". Later, Guthrie told Lincoln that Morehead's arrest had "not been beneficial" to their cause in Kentucky. Morehead was paroled on January 6, 1862, on the condition that he swear an oath not to take part in the Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
insurgence. On March 19, 1862, he was unconditionally discharged from his parole.
Morehead returned to his home in Louisville, but feared his refusal to take an oath of allegiance to the Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
would lead to another arrest. In June 1862, he fled to Canada, then to Europe, and finally to Mexico. Following the war, Morehead returned to the United States and lived on his plantation in Greenville, Mississippi. He died there on December 21, 1868 and was buried on the grounds. On May 31, 1879, he was reburied in the Frankfort Cemetery
Frankfort Cemetery
The Frankfort Cemetery is located on East Main Street in Frankfort, Kentucky. The cemetery is the burial site of Daniel Boone and contains the graves of other famous Americans including seventeen Kentucky governors.-History:...
in Frankfort, Kentucky.