David J. Saunders (January 25, 1811 – June 12, 1873) was a Virginia businessman and politician. He served two terms representing the

City of Richmond The City of Richmond was a local government area about east of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The city covered an area of , and existed from 1855 until 1994. History Richmond was incorporated as a municipality on 24 A ...

in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

, and was President of Richmond's City Council during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. After the city's surrender and during two periods during which Union military authorities removed long-time and pro-Confederate mayor Joseph C. Mayo, Saunders in effect managed the city, especially its waterworks and gasworks.

Early and family life

Born in Virginia early in 1811, possibly to John H. Saunders, the principal of Richmond's male orphanage and his wife Sally (the institution's matron). David J. Saunders married Maria Hope in

Louisa, Virginia Louisa (originally named Louisa Court House) is a town in Louisa County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,983 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Louisa County. History Louisa Court House was named for the county courthou ...

, on December 10, 1829. They had at least two sons and two daughters. David J. Saunders probably owned four slaves in 1840. He owned at least one enslaved person in 1850. By 1860 Saunders owned at least 39 slaves.

Career

By 1850 Saunders operated a grocery in Richmond, Virginia, while his 12 and 8 year old sons David Saunders Jr. and John Saunders and their sisters Sarah (age 14) and Maria (age 10) attended school. The grocer and distiller who prospered in Richmond shortly after this man's death was Edmund Archer Saunders (1831-1898), son of Isaac Taylor Saunders and who before the war operated a grocery at "Piney Grove" in

Charles City County Charles City County is a county located in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated southeast of Richmond and west of Jamestown. It is bounded on the south by the James River and on the east by the Chickahominy River. The a ...

. E.A. Saunders' mansion in what was then Richmond's West End is now Founders Hall of

Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a Public university, public research university in Richmond, Virginia, United States. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virgin ...

American Civil War

Richmond's voters elected Saunders as one of their three representatives (a part-time position) in the Virginia House of Delegates in 1859. He failed to win re-election in 1861, although he again won election in 1863. After the Confederate government left Richmond on April 2, 1865, departing Confederate troops burned the tobacco storehouses as mayor Mayo and city council president Saunders had feared and despite their pleas. The resulting conflagration destroyed much of the city. Early the following morning, Mayo rode his carriage eastward out of the city, seeking a Union officer to whom to surrender Richmond, as well as plead for assistance in suppressing the fire. Occupation authorities soon removed Mayo from office, although when the Union-sympathizing Virginia Governor,

Francis Pierpont Francis Harrison Pierpont (January 25, 1814March 24, 1899), called the "Father of West Virginia," was an American lawyer and politician who achieved prominence during the American Civil War. During the conflict's first two years, Pierpont served ...

, arrived in Richmond on May 26, he allowed mayor Mayo to resume office. When

Congressional Reconstruction The Reconstruction era was a period in US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the abolition of slavery and reintegration of the former Confederate Sta ...

began, Virginia's military administrator, Gen. John Wesley Turner, responded to complaints about vigilantes rounding up blacks and charging them as vagrants in the mayor's court (where mayor Mayo threatened to return them to slavery) by instructing his subordinates not to obey directions from mayor Mayo nor other city officials. General Turner issued another order prohibiting the organization of the new city council when Richmonders appeared to elect lawyer and former Confederate colonel Nathaniel A. Sturdivant as mayor and six other former Confederates to lesser positions. Under pressure from federal authorities, Sturdivant declined to accept office, so Gen. Turner asked Saunders to continue as city manager, operating the gas and water works. Governor Pierpont formally removed mayor Mayo from office, then on July 3, 1865, appointed Saunders Richmond's mayor to replace him. However, when municipal elections were again held on April 6, 1866, voters attempted to return Mayo to office. The military governor during

(now Gen.

John Schofield John McAllister Schofield (; September 29, 1831 – March 4, 1906) was an American soldier who held major commands during the American Civil War. He was appointed U.S. Secretary of War (1868–1869) under President Andrew Johnson and later serve ...

) again removed Mayo from office on May 4, this time appointing New York-born

George Chahoon George Chamberlin Chahoon (February 2, 1840 – July 29, 1934) was an American politician from Virginia and New York. He was Mayor of Richmond, Virginia, from 1868 to 1870, and a Republican member of the New York State Senate from 1896 to 1900 ...

as Richmond's mayor on May 6, 1866. Meanwhile, banker William H. MacFarland succeeded Saunders as city council President. However, even federal census-takers in 1870 still considered Saunders the city's mayor.

Death

Saunders died on June 12, 1873. He was buried in Hollywood Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saunders, David J. 1811 births 1873 deaths People from Henrico County, Virginia Mayors of Richmond, Virginia Members of the Virginia House of Delegates People of Virginia in the American Civil War Burials at Hollywood Cemetery (Richmond, Virginia) 19th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly