Robert Fulwood Ligon was the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

. 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...

, Ligon served Governor George S. Houston

George S. Houston

George Smith Houston was an American Democratic politician who was the 24th Governor of Alabama from 1874 to 1878....

 of the same political party from 1874 to 1876. Ligon also served in the United States House of Representatives.

The son of Robert and Wilhelmina (Fulwood) Ligon, Robert Ligon was born in Watkinsville

Watkinsville, Georgia

Watkinsville is a town in Oconee County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 2,097. The city is the county seat of Oconee County...

, Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

. Ligon began his education in the local schools of Watkinsville and later attended the University of Georgia

University of Georgia

The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...

. After graduating, Ligon moved to Tuskegee, Alabama

Tuskegee, Alabama

Tuskegee is a city in Macon County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 11,846 and is designated a Micropolitan Statistical Area. Tuskegee has been an important site in various stages of African American history....

 to study law under Judge David Clopton

David Clopton

David Clopton was a prominent Alabama politician.-Biography:Clopton was born in Putnam County, Georgia, and moved to Alabama in 1844. He graduated from Randolph-Macon College in 1840 and was admitted to the bar in 1841.Clopton represented Alabama's 3rd district in the United States House of...

 before being admitted to the Alabama bar association

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...

. Prior to the beginning of the American 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...

, Ligon served Alabama as a state senator in 1864, and as a member of the state legislature from Macon County.

In 1874, Ligon was elected as Lieutenant Governor of Alabama in an election campaign that returned the state to white supremacy

White supremacy

White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...

. Although Ligon served his full two year term as Lieutenant Governor, the position was eliminated in 1875 and would not be reestablished until adoption of the Alabama Constitution

Alabama Constitution

The Constitution of the State of Alabama is the basic governing document of the U.S. state of Alabama. It was adopted in 1901 and is the sixth constitution that the state has had....

 in 1901. Upon completion of his term, Ligon was elected to and served in the United States Congress

United States Congress

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

 from 1876 to 1878.

External links

• Alabama Governor's Mansion - Ligon's former home