Thomas Elliott Bramlette (January 3, 1817 – January 12, 1875) was the 23rd

Governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of Kentucky. Sixty-two 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-e ...

. He was elected in 1863 and guided the state through the latter part of the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

and the beginning of

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology * Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *''Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

. At the outbreak of the war, Bramlette put his promising political career on hold and enlisted in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

, raising and commanding the

3rd Kentucky Infantry The 3rd Kentucky Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It was part of the First Kentucky Brigade through August 1862. Service The 3rd Kentucky Infantry wa ...

. In 1862,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...

appointed him

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a ...

for Kentucky. A year later, he was the Union Democrats' nominee for governor. Election interference by the Union Army gave him a landslide victory over his opponent,

Charles A. Wickliffe Charles Anderson Wickliffe (June 8, 1788 – October 31, 1869) was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky. He also served as Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives, the 14th Governor of Kentucky, and was appointed Postmaster General by Pr ...

. Within a year, however, federal policies such as recruiting Kentucky

Negroes In the English language, ''negro'' is a term historically used to denote persons considered to be of Black African heritage. The word ''negro'' means the color black in both Spanish and in Portuguese, where English took it from. The term can be ...

for the Union Army and suspending the writ of ''

habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court and request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, ...

'' for Kentucky citizens caused Bramlette to abandon his support of the Lincoln administration and declare that he would "bloodily baptize the state into the Confederacy". After the war, Bramlette issued a general

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

for most ex-Confederates in the state. He opposed ratification of the Fourteenth and

Fifteenth In music, a fifteenth or double octave, abbreviated ''15ma'', is the interval between one musical note and another with one-quarter the wavelength or quadruple the frequency. It has also been referred to as the bisdiapason. The fourth harmonic, ...

Amendments and the establishment of the

Freedmen's Bureau The Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, usually referred to as simply the Freedmen's Bureau, was an agency of early Reconstruction, assisting freedmen in the South. It was established on March 3, 1865, and operated briefly as a ...

in Kentucky. Among his accomplishments not related to the war and its aftermath were the reduction of the state's debt and the establishment of the Kentucky Agricultural and Mechanical College (now the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

). Following his term as governor, Bramlette returned to his legal practice in

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. He died January 12, 1875 and was buried in

Cave Hill Cemetery Cave Hill Cemetery is a Victorian era National Cemetery and arboretum located at Louisville, Kentucky. Its main entrance is on Baxter Avenue and there is a secondary one on Grinstead Drive. It is the largest cemetery by area and number of buri ...

Early life

Thomas E. Bramlette was born on January 3, 1817, at Elliott's Cross Roads in

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic counties of England, historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th c ...

(now Clinton) County, Kentucky.Allen, p. 106 He was the son of

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 ...

Ambrose S. and Sarah (Elliott) Bramlette.Harrison, p. 112 His father served two terms in the

Kentucky Senate The Kentucky Senate is the upper house of the Kentucky General Assembly. The Kentucky Senate is composed of 38 members elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. There are no term limits for Kentucky Senators. The Kentu ...

and several terms in the

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 ...

. Bramlette studied law, was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar ( ...

in 1837 at the age of 20, and began practicing in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

.NGA Bio In September of that year, Bramlette married Sallie Travis, the first of his two wives.Powell, p. 56 The couple had two children, Thomas and Corinne.Webb, p. 93 Bramlette's political career began in 1841, when he was elected to represent Clinton County in the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of pres ...

. In 1848, Governor

John J. Crittenden John Jordan Crittenden (September 10, 1787 July 26, 1863) was an American statesman and politician from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He represented the state in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and twice served as Unite ...

appointed Bramlette

Commonwealth's Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a lo ...

. He resigned the position in 1850 to continue his legal practice, relocating to

Columbia, Kentucky Columbia is a home rule-class city just above Russell Creek in Adair County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 4,452 at the 2010 census. Columbia is the seat of its county. History The area was settled by Daniel Trabue. The ...

in 1852. He was the Whig nominee for his district's seat in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

in 1853, but was defeated by Democrat

James Chrisman James Stone Chrisman (September 14, 1818 – July 29, 1881) was an antebellum United States Representative from Kentucky and then a member of the Confederate States Congress during the American Civil War. Chrisman was born in Monticello, Kentucky, ...

. In 1856, he was elected as a judge in Kentucky's 6th Judicial District, serving with distinction for five years.

Military service

Bramlette resigned his judgeship and accepted a commission as a

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 ...

in the

on August 7, 1861.Trowbridge, "Kentucky's Military Governors" In violation of Kentucky's agreement to remain neutral in the

, he raised and commanded the

. On September 19, the 3rd Kentucky marched on

Lexington Lexington may refer to: Places England * Laxton, Nottinghamshire, formerly Lexington Canada * Lexington, a district in Waterloo, Ontario United States * Lexington, Kentucky, the largest city with this name * Lexington, Massachusetts, the oldes ...

to forestall a peace conference scheduled there on September 21 and to arrest the state's junior

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, John C. Breckinridge.Rawley, p. 39 A delay allowed Breckinridge to escape before the arrest was made, and he enlisted in the

Confederate 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), fighti ...

shortly thereafter. Bramlette resigned his military commission on July 13, 1862 at

Decherd, Tennessee Decherd is a city in Franklin County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,246 at the 2000 census and 2,361 at the 2010 census. History Peter Decherd came to the area in 1831 from Franklin County, Virginia and set up a plantation. In t ...

. He returned to Louisville to accept

's offer to become

United States District Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

for Kentucky.''Encyclopedia of Kentucky'' During his tenure in this position, he vigorously enforced Kentucky's wartime laws against Confederates and Confederate sympathizers.

Governor of Kentucky

Union Democrats chose Joshua Fry Bell as their candidate for governor of Kentucky in 1863, but Bell was skeptical of Kentucky's future with the Union and withdrew his name from consideration. The party's central committee chose Bramlette to replace Bell, and Bramlette declined a commission as a

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointe ...

in the Union Army to make the race. During the election, Union forces intimidated and jailed supporters of Bramlette's opponent, former governor

. As a result, Bramlette carried the election by a margin of nearly 4-to-1. During his term, he turned down an offered seat in the U.S. House of Representatives as well as a nomination to become the Democratic candidate for

Vice-President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

in 1864.

Civil War

In December 1863, Bramlette addressed the General Assembly, declaring that the state had fulfilled its quota of soldiers for the Union army.Webb, p. 94 January 4 of the following year, he proclaimed that rebel sympathizers would be held responsible for all guerrilla raids in the state, and specified stiff fines and imprisonment for anyone found to be aiding the guerrillas. Although Bramlette assumed the governorship as a staunch supporter of the Union cause, within a year he issued a proclamation that he would "bloodily baptize the state into the Confederacy". The reasons for Bramlette's reversal were many. He took issue with General

Stephen Burbridge Stephen Gano Burbridge (August 19, 1831 – December 2, 1894), also known as "Butcher" Burbridge or the "Butcher of Kentucky", was a controversial Union general during the American Civil War. In June 1864 he was given command over the Commonwealt ...

's decision to enlist for

United States Colored Troops The United States Colored Troops (USCT) were regiments in the United States Army composed primarily of African-American ( colored) soldiers, although members of other minority groups also served within the units. They were first recruited durin ...

blacks from Kentucky for military service, asking that this measure only be taken if Kentucky failed to meet her quota. With the goal of enlistment of Kentucky blacks into the Union Army, Lincoln authorized a special census in 1863 which showed 1,650 freemen and 40,000 enslaved males of military age. Presented with this figure, by March 1864, Bramlette reluctantly agreed to Black enlistment since white enlistment failed to meet quota. He stipulated that owners must consent and receive $300. By April, enslaved men, despite the stipulation of owner consent and motivated by the prospect for their emancipation, fled to enlist. This led to a wave of violence towards those seeking enlistment. Given this onslaught, by June 1864 owners’ consent was no longer required, as ordered by Union Army Adj. Gen. Lorenzo Thomas. The situation worsened when on July 5, 1864, President Lincoln suspended the writ of ''

'' for citizens of the Commonwealth.Harrison, p. 113 Burbridge continually menaced Kentucky's citizens, interfering with the presidential election of 1864, and banishing

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

Richard T. Jacob from the state. When the General Assembly re-convened in January 1865, Bramlette continued to voice his opposition to the Union's tactics. Nevertheless, he urged passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, maintaining that the institution of slavery was "irrevocably doomed".Webb, p. 95

Reconstruction era

Despite his disagreements with the Lincoln administration, Bramlette proclaimed a day of

fasting Fasting is the abstention from eating and sometimes drinking. From a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (see " Breakfast"), or to the metabolic state achieved after ...

and

prayer Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deifie ...

upon receiving news of Lincoln's assassination. The General Assembly petitioned new president

Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a De ...

to call an end to

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Martia ...

in the state. The tension between the state and federal governments remained, however. Bramlette announced that every "white male citizen" twenty-one years of age who had resided in the Commonwealth for at least two years would be eligible to vote. Spurred on by the Democratic governor's actions, Kentucky gave control of both houses of the General Assembly and five of its nine congressional seats to Democrats. President Johnson received the message, ending martial law and restoring ''habeas corpus'' in Kentucky. When the General Assembly convened in December 1865, Bramlette sought to restore harmony in the state by issuing

pardons A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

to most ex-Confederates. He and the majority of the General Assembly opposed passage of the Fourteenth and

amendments, and Bramlette protested the establishment of the

in the Commonwealth. Bramlette was very proud of those of his accomplishments not related to the Civil War, including the reduction of the state's debt and the establishment of the Agricultural and Mechanical College (later, the

). He supported the construction of turnpikes financed by government bonds, the development of natural resources, and encouraged immigration to obtain adequate labor to support reconstruction efforts.

Later life and death

Following his term as governor, Bramlette conducted a failed campaign to become a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...

. He married Mary E. Graham Adams in 1874, two years after the death of his first wife. He returned to his law practice in Louisville, and became a patron of many charitable organizations. Bramlette died in Louisville on January 12, 1875 following a brief illness.Webb, p. 96 He is buried at

in Louisville.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * *

External links

*
Biography from Lawyers and Lawmakers of Kentucky
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bramlette, Thomas E. 1817 births 1875 deaths Burials at Cave Hill Cemetery Governors of Kentucky Kentucky Commonwealth's Attorneys Kentucky Democrats Kentucky lawyers Kentucky state court judges Kentucky Whigs 19th-century American politicians Members of the Kentucky House of Representatives People from Clinton County, Kentucky Politicians from Louisville, Kentucky People of Kentucky in the American Civil War Southern Unionists in the American Civil War Union Army colonels Union (American Civil War) state governors United States Attorneys for the District of Kentucky Democratic Party governors of Kentucky 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers