Harris Flanagin (November 3, 1817October 23, 1874) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the 7th governor of Arkansas from 1862 to 1864, and in exile from 1864 to 1865. Prior to this he was a

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

officer who commanded

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

in the Western Theater of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

Early life and education

Flanagin was born in Roadstown, New Jersey, to James, a farmer and cabinetmaker, and Mary ( née Harris) Flanagin. He was educated at a Quaker school in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

and then went on to teach at Clermont Seminary in Frankford (present-day

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

). Soon after he moved to

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, where he again tried teaching and while at this work studied law. In 1838 Flanagin moved to

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

, settling first at Pine Bluff, then

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

, then Clark County in 1839, and

Arkadelphia Arkadelphia is a city in Clark County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 10,714. The city is the county seat of Clark County. It is situated at the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Two universities, Henderso ...

in 1842. He served in the Arkansas House of Representatives from 1842 to 1844 and the

Arkansas Senate The Arkansas State Senate is the upper branch of the Arkansas General Assembly. The Senate consists of 35 members, each representing a district with about 83,000 people. Service in the state legislature is part-time, and many state senators have ...

from 1848 to 1850. He was married on July 3, 1851, to Miss Martha Eliza Nash of Lafayette County.Newberry, Farrar. "Harris Flanagin." Arkansas Historical Quarterly 17 (Spring 1955): 3–20. During the

Flanagin was promoted to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

, commanding the 2d Arkansas Mounted Rifles.

Governor of Arkansas

In 1862, Flanagin was elected governor of Arkansas and resigned from the Army to take office. His administration dealt primarily with war related measures and maintaining order and continuing government while undergoing an invasion. The government was faced with shortages of critical items, rising prices, care of fallen soldier's families, and related problems. During the American Civil War, the state government was forced to suspend the collection of taxes and financed the war with paper "war bonds". When on September 10, 1863, the capital of Little Rock fell to

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

forces and Arkansas’s state government fled the city, he seized as many government documents as he could and reestablished the capitol at

Washington, Arkansas Washington is a city in Ozan Township, Hempstead County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 180 at the 2010 census, up from 148 in 2000. It is part of the Hope Micropolitan Statistical Area. The city is home to Historic Washington S ...

. While governor Flanagin remained in

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

controlled southwest Arkansas, a Union administration under provisional governor

Isaac Murphy Isaac Murphy (October 16, 1799 or 1802 – September 8, 1882)Every Arkansas reference says that he was born in 1799; most other sources, including genealogical studies, say he was born in 1802. was a native of Pennsylvania, a teacher and la ...

was inaugurated April 18, 1864, in the Arkansas State House at Little Rock.

Later life and death

After the American Civil War, Flanagin returned the state archives and resumed his law practice in Arkadelphia. He died and is buried at Rose Hill Cemetery, Arkadelphia.

Electoral history

Notes

References

External links

*
Harris Flanagin
at

The Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations o ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flanagin, Harris 1817 births 1874 deaths 19th-century American educators 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century American politicians 19th-century Baptists 19th-century Presbyterians American Freemasons American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law American militia officers American people of Irish descent Arkansas Democrats Arkansas Independents Arkansas lawyers Arkansas Whigs Baptists from New Jersey Burials in Arkansas Colonels (military rank) Confederate States Army officers Confederate States of America state governors Democratic Party governors of Arkansas Educators from Philadelphia Exiled politicians Governors of Arkansas Members of the Arkansas House of Representatives Military personnel from Arkansas Northern-born Confederates People from Cumberland County, New Jersey People of Arkansas in the American Civil War People of the Brooks–Baxter War Presbyterians from Arkansas Recipients of American presidential pardons Schoolteachers from Illinois Schoolteachers from Pennsylvania