John DeWitt Clinton Atkins
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician and a member of both 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...
and Confederate Congress from Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
.
Biography
Atkins was born at Manly's Chapel, Tennessee, in Henry County. He attended a private school in Paris, TennesseeParis, Tennessee
Paris is a city in Henry County, Tennessee, United States, west of Nashville, on a fork of the West Sandy River. In 1900, 2,018 people lived in Paris, Tennessee; in 1910, 3,881; and in 1940, 6,395. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 9,763. It is the county seat of Henry...
, graduated from East Tennessee University at Knoxville
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
in 1846, and studied law. He was admitted to the bar
Bar association
A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...
, but he did not practice, instead engaging in agricultural pursuits.
Atkins was a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives
Tennessee House of Representatives
The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.-Constitutional requirements:...
from 1849 to 1851. He served in the Tennessee Senate
Tennessee Senate
The Tennessee Senate is the upper house of the Tennessee state legislature, which is known formally as the Tennessee General Assembly.The Tennessee Senate, according to the state constitution of 1870, is composed of 33 members, one-third the size of the Tennessee House of Representatives. Senators...
from 1855 to 1857. He was elected as 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...
to the Thirty-fifth Congress by Tennessee's 9th congressional district
Tennessee's 9th congressional district
The 9th Congressional District of Tennessee is a Congressional district in southwestern Tennessee. The district is located entirely within Shelby County, and includes most of the city of Memphis...
. He served from March 4, 1857 to March 3, 1859, but he was not a successful candidate for re-election to the Thirty-sixth Congress.
During 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...
, he served as lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
of the Fifth Tennessee Regiment in the Confederate Army
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
in 1861. He was a delegate to the Confederate Provisional Congress in November 1861. He then was elected to the First Confederate Congress
First Confederate Congress
The First Confederate Congress was the first regular term of the legislature of the Confederate States of America. Members of the First Confederate Congress were chosen in elections mostly held on 6 November 1861.-Sessions:...
and was reelected in 1863 to the Second Confederate Congress
Second Confederate Congress
The Second Confederate Congress was the second and last regular term of the legislature of the Confederate States of America. Members of the Second Confederate Congress were chosen in elections held at various dates in 1863 and 1864...
.
Following the war, he was elected as 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...
to the Forty-third and the four succeeding Congresses by Tennessee's 7th congressional district
Tennessee's 7th congressional district
The 7th Congressional District of Tennessee is a congressional district located in the middle and southwestern parts of the state, connecting suburbs of Memphis and Nashville. It is the state's wealthiest district in terms of per capita income, as well as the third largest in area.Cities in the...
, and then by the 8th congressional district
Tennessee's 8th congressional district
The 8th Congressional District of Tennessee is a congressional district in Tennessee. It currently includes roughly the northwestern part of the state....
after reapportionment. During the Forty-fifth and Forty-sixth Congresses, he was the chairman of the United States House Committee on Appropriations
United States House Committee on Appropriations
The Committee on Appropriations is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is in charge of setting the specific expenditures of money by the government of the United States...
. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1882.
Atkins engaged in agricultural pursuits near Paris, Tennessee in Henry County. He was appointed United States Commissioner of Indian Affairs
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency of the federal government of the United States within the US Department of the Interior. It is responsible for the administration and management of of land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans in the United States, Native American...
by President Cleveland
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
on March 21, 1885, and he served until June 13, 1888 when he resigned. During his tenure as commissioner, Atkins forbade use of Native languages in reservation schools, stating in 1887 that "instruction of the Indians in the vernacular is not only of no use to them, but it is detrimental to the cause of their education and civilization". He was an unsuccessful Democratic nomination for United States Senator in 1888. He again engaged in agricultural pursuits, retired from active pursuits in 1898, and moved to Paris, Tennessee. He lived there in retirement until his death in 1908. He was interred
Burial
Burial is the act of placing a person or object into the ground. This is accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing an object in it, and covering it over.-History:...
in the City Cemetery.
A family friend who developed Atlanta's Atkins Park
Atkins Park
Atkins Park is an intown neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia, nestled in the southeast corner of Virginia Highland neighborhood west of Briarcliff Avenue and north of Ponce de Leon Avenue . It consists of just three streets:* St. Louis Place...
neighborhood named it in honor of the colonele.