James Henry Hammond
Encyclopedia
James Henry Hammond was a politician from South Carolina
. He served as a United States Representative from 1835 to 1836, the 60th Governor of South Carolina
from 1842 to 1844, and United States Senator from 1857 to 1860. He was the brother-in-law of Wade Hampton II
and uncle of Wade Hampton III
.
in 1825, going on to teach school, write for a newspaper and study law. He was admitted to the bar
in 1828 and started a practice in Columbia, South Carolina
. He established a newspaper in South Carolina
in support of nullification
and was also a planter. He served in the United States House of Representatives
as a member of the Nullifier Party
from 1835 until his resignation the next year due to ill health. After spending two years in Europe
, he returned to South Carolina and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He served as Governor of South Carolina
from 1842 to 1844 and in the United States Senate
, following the death of Andrew P. Butler
, from 1857 until his resignation in 1860 in light of South Carolina's secession from the Union
.
A Democrat
, Hammond was perhaps best known during his lifetime as an outspoken defender of slavery
and states' rights
. It was Hammond who popularized the phrase that "Cotton is King" in an 1858 speech to the Senate. He also compared the South's "well compensated" slaves to the North's "scantily compensated" slaves (hired skilled laborers and operatives).
His Secret and Sacred Diaries reveal that his appetites did not end there. He describes, without embarrassment, his 'familiarities and dalliances' with four teenage nieces - the daughters of Wade Hampton II. Blaming the seductiveness of the “extremely affectionate” young women, his political career was crushed for a decade to come, and the girls with their tarnished social reputations never married. His mansion in Beech Island, South Carolina, Redcliffe http://www.southcarolinaparks.com/park-finder/state-park/2015.aspx, represents his ideal of the perfectly run plantation
. http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/awhhtml/awmss5/d08.html
Hammond School in Columbia, South Carolina is named after him. Founded in 1966, originally as a white-flight school, it was originally named James H. Hammond Academy.
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. He served as a United States Representative from 1835 to 1836, the 60th Governor of South Carolina
Governor of South Carolina
The Governor of the State of South Carolina is the head of state for the State of South Carolina. Under the South Carolina Constitution, the Governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the South Carolina executive branch. The Governor is the ex officio...
from 1842 to 1844, and United States Senator from 1857 to 1860. He was the brother-in-law of Wade Hampton II
Wade Hampton II
Wade Hampton II was an American plantation owner and soldier in the War of 1812. He was a member of the Hampton family, whose influence was strong in South Carolina politics and social circles for nearly 100 years....
and uncle of Wade Hampton III
Wade Hampton III
Wade Hampton III was a Confederate cavalry leader during the American Civil War and afterward a politician from South Carolina, serving as its 77th Governor and as a U.S...
.
Biography
Hammond graduated from South Carolina CollegeUniversity of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
in 1825, going on to teach school, write for a newspaper and study law. He was admitted to the bar
Admission to the bar in the United States
In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...
in 1828 and started a practice in Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
. He established a newspaper in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
in support of nullification
Nullification Crisis
The Nullification Crisis was a sectional crisis during the presidency of Andrew Jackson created by South Carolina's 1832 Ordinance of Nullification. This ordinance declared by the power of the State that the federal Tariff of 1828 and 1832 were unconstitutional and therefore null and void within...
and was also a planter. He served in the United States House of Representatives
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...
as a member of the Nullifier Party
Nullifier Party
The Nullifier Party was a short-lived political party based in South Carolina in the 1830s. Started by John C. Calhoun, it was a states' rights party that supported the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, holding that States could nullify federal laws within their borders...
from 1835 until his resignation the next year due to ill health. After spending two years in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, he returned to South Carolina and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He served as Governor of South Carolina
Governor of South Carolina
The Governor of the State of South Carolina is the head of state for the State of South Carolina. Under the South Carolina Constitution, the Governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the South Carolina executive branch. The Governor is the ex officio...
from 1842 to 1844 and in the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, following the death of Andrew P. Butler
Andrew Butler
Andrew Pickens Butler was an United States Senator and one of the authors of the Kansas-Nebraska Act.-Biography:...
, from 1857 until his resignation in 1860 in light of South Carolina's secession from the Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
.
A Democrat
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...
, Hammond was perhaps best known during his lifetime as an outspoken defender of slavery
History of slavery in the United States
Slavery in the United States was a form of slave labor which existed as a legal institution in North America for more than a century before the founding of the United States in 1776, and continued mostly in the South until the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution in...
and states' rights
States' rights
States' rights in U.S. politics refers to political powers reserved for the U.S. state governments rather than the federal government. It is often considered a loaded term because of its use in opposition to federally mandated racial desegregation...
. It was Hammond who popularized the phrase that "Cotton is King" in an 1858 speech to the Senate. He also compared the South's "well compensated" slaves to the North's "scantily compensated" slaves (hired skilled laborers and operatives).
His Secret and Sacred Diaries reveal that his appetites did not end there. He describes, without embarrassment, his 'familiarities and dalliances' with four teenage nieces - the daughters of Wade Hampton II. Blaming the seductiveness of the “extremely affectionate” young women, his political career was crushed for a decade to come, and the girls with their tarnished social reputations never married. His mansion in Beech Island, South Carolina, Redcliffe http://www.southcarolinaparks.com/park-finder/state-park/2015.aspx, represents his ideal of the perfectly run 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...
. http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/awhhtml/awmss5/d08.html
Hammond School in Columbia, South Carolina is named after him. Founded in 1966, originally as a white-flight school, it was originally named James H. Hammond Academy.
Further reading
- Faust, Drew GilpinDrew Gilpin FaustCatherine Drew Gilpin Faust is an American historian, college administrator, and the president of Harvard University. Faust is the first woman to serve as Harvard's president and the university's 28th president overall. Faust is the fifth woman to serve as president of an Ivy League university, and...
, James Henry Hammond and the Old South,' Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge and London, 1982, ISBN 0-8071-1048-5
- Bleser, Carol, Editor, Secret and Sacred, The Diaries of James Henry Hammond, a Southern Slaveholder,' Oxford University Press, New York, 1988, ISBN 0-19-505308-7