Jesse J. Finley
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Jesse Johnson Finley (November 18, 1812 – November 6, 1904) was an American politician and military officer who was a brigadier general in the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...
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 ...
and a Democratic member of the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
from Florida after the
Reconstruction era The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...
. He also served as mayor of
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
; a volunteer officer in the
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during the
Second Seminole War The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups of people collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Muscogee, Creek and Black Seminoles as well as oth ...
; a member of 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 ...
; a member of the
Florida Senate The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida House of Representatives being the lower house. Article III, Section 1 of the C ...
; and a
circuit court Circuit courts are court systems in several common law jurisdictions. It may refer to: * Courts that literally sit 'on circuit', i.e., judges move around a region or country to different towns or cities where they will hear cases; * Courts that s ...
judge in Florida.


Early life (1812 to 1852)

Finley was born near
Lebanon, Tennessee Lebanon ( ) is the county seat of Wilson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 38,431 at the 2020 census. Lebanon is located in Middle Tennessee, approximately east of downtown Nashville. Lebanon is part of the Nashville Metro ...
. He served as
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
of mounted volunteers in the
Second Seminole War The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups of people collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Muscogee, Creek and Black Seminoles as well as oth ...
in 1836. Finley studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1838. He moved to
Mississippi County, Arkansas Mississippi County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,685. There are two county seats, Blytheville and Osceola. The county is named for the Mississippi River which borders th ...
, in 1840, where he practiced law. Finley served in 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 ...
in 1841. He moved to
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
, in 1842, and continued the practice of law. He served as mayor of Memphis in 1845. He moved to
Marianna, Florida Marianna is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Florida, United States, and it is home to Chipola College, part of the state's public system. The official nickname of Marianna is "The City of Southern Charm". The population was 6,24 ...
, in November 1846 and was elected to the
Florida Senate The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida House of Representatives being the lower house. Article III, Section 1 of the C ...
in 1850. Finley was a
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on the Whig Party ticket in 1852.


Judicial Service to the State of Florida (1853 to 1861)

On May 1, 1853, Florida Governor Thomas Brown appointed Finley Circuit Judge of the Western Judicial Circuit of Florida.Hardy Finley served as a Circuit Judge of the Western Judicial Circuit of Florida from 1853 to 1861.


State of Florida v. Simon, A Slave

In June 1853, Finley presided over State of Florida v. Simon, A Slave. The case involved an arson and a confession under duress. The Collins Hotel in Pensacola, Florida burned on October 17, 1852; the Collins fire spread to the home of Francisco Moreno. On October 18, Dr. R.T. Maxwell's home burned, and an alleged arson attempt was made to the home of a Mrs. Derry, from which a perpetrator was discovered and fled. On October 19, Alex McVoy's home burned. After the McVoy fire, Pensacola Mayor Joseph Sierra ordered the arrest of Simon, one of McVoy's slaves, for arson. Sierra questioned Simon in the Mayor's office; took Simon's confession to arson of the Maxwell, Derry, and McVoy homes; and ordered Simon arrested. Simon was held in the Pensacola jail from October 1852 until trial in June 1853. Sierra testified at the June trial that during Simon’s interrogation "there was a great crowd just outside the mayor’s office calling for Simon to be hanged. According to Mayor Sierra, if not for the protection he gave Simon, 'the people would have taken imoninto their own hands.' The mayor told Simon that if he admitted that he alone had burned Dr. Maxwell’s house, that he would be tried and certainly hung. However, the mayor also told Simon that if he had accomplices, he could turn state’s evidence and his accomplices would be put on trial rather than him." Sierra further testified that when he asked Simon if he set these fires, "Simon replied, 'Send for my master, and I will tell the whole.' Simon’s master, Alex McVoy, arrived at the mayor’s office, and McVoy reiterated to Simon the warnings and promises that the mayor had already made. Simon then stated that he had set fire to Dr. Maxwell’s house, and that he was alone when he did it. Simon told Mayor Sierra and McVoy that he had started the fire at a ground-floor window on the east side of Dr. Maxwell’s house and remained there until it was blazing." Simon’s attorney Richard Lewis Campbell questioned Mr. Joseph Commyns, who "testified that he saw Dr. Maxwell’s house on fire at about 2 a.m. and that he was one of the first persons to arrive on scene. Commyns contradicted Simon’s purported confession. According to Commyns, the fire did not start at the ground floor of the house as Simon had stated, but rather at the shingles on the roof." Campbell also questioned Chester Knapp, who "contradicted Simon’s purported confession. According to Knapp, the fire had not started on the ground floor, but rather in the attic. Further, Knapp testified that upon seeing the attic in flames, he had tried to break down the front door of the home, and that had the ground floor windows been burning, he would have noticed." Following Campbell's examination of Commyns and Knapp, the State questioned McVoy, "who testified that he was in the mayor’s office when Simon confessed and that Simon was 'laboring under great terror, and that he never saw anyone more terrified.'" Citing American and English common law, Campbell motioned that Finley "exclude Simon’s confession from the jury’s consideration, arguing that Simon’s statements to Mayor Sierra were elicited by undue terror or the hope of reward." Finley denied Campbell’s motion and directed the jury "to determine whether Simon’s confession was voluntary." The jury found Simon guilty. Simon stated at a sentencing hearing that he was not guilty of arson. Finley then ordered Simon executed by hanging on Friday, August 26, 1853, between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. by the Sheriff of Escambia County at “some convenient place.” Campbell appealed Finley's denial of Campbell's motion to the
Supreme Court of Florida The Supreme Court of Florida is the state supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven justices—one of whom serves as Chief Justice. Six members are chosen from six districts around the state to foster geog ...
. The Court heard oral arguments on July 13 and 14, 1853. On July 25, 1853, with Finley present, the Court reversed Finley's denial of Campbell's motion in a 2 to 1 ruling, and ordered a new trial. The Court based their decision "on the common law doctrine that for a confession to be admissible as evidence, the mind of the accused should at the time of the confession be uninfluenced by fear or hope. With respect to Simon’s confession, Justice lbert G.Semmes noted that there were 'few cases to be found in the books where stronger influences were brought to bear on the mind of the prisoner to extort a confession than the one before us. That it was made under the influence of fear or apprehension of personal violence, can scarce be doubted.' Justice Semmes noted that the crowd outside the mayor’s office was clamoring to hang Simon, and Mayor Sierra, who was Simon’s only protection from the crowd, was demanding that Simon confess. Justice Semmes reasoned that if Simon maintained his innocence, he risked alienating Mayor Sierra, which could have resulted in the mayor abandoning him to the crowd. Justice Semmes speculated that in Simon’s mind, a confession was 'the only immediate security for his person and his life.' Justice Semmes also focused on the fact that Simon was a slave, and that Simon made his confession in the presence of, and at the urging of, his master. According to Justice Semmes, 'the ease with which this class of our population can be intimidated, and the almost absolute control which the owner does involuntarily exercise over the will of the slave, should induce the courts at all times to receive their confessions with the utmost caution and distrust.' Further, Justice Semmes opined that the trial testimony proved that Simon had falsely confessed. Specifically, Justice Semmes noted that when Simon admitted to the burning of Dr. Maxwell’s house, he claimed to have set the fire at the east window on the first floor of the home, and that he had stayed there watching the fire until it blazed up. However, the two defense witnesses who testified at trial stated that the fire had started at the top of the house in the attic. One of these witnesses testified that, as the attic burned, he was located near the ground floor east window where Simon had confessed to starting the fire, but there was no fire there. According to Justice Semmes, ' ese witnesses, who are unimpeached, and whose testimony is uncontradicted, establish the fact, that the confessions of the prisoner as to the particulars of the burning were altogether untrue.' As Justice Semmes reasoned, if Simon had been truthfully confessing to arson, he would have had no reason to lie about the location where he had started the fire." Hardy stated that "without imon'scoerced confession, it did not appear there was any evidence to convict him." Simon was to be held in the Pensacola jail until the second trial. Finley cancelled the October 1853 Escambia County Circuit Court term due to a Yellow Fever epidemic. Simon’s second trial was postponed until the next Escambia County Circuit Court term, in June 1854. Simon died in the Pensacola jail on February 25, 1854. The Florida Supreme Court's 1853 reversal of Finley's decision established a precedent that confessions extracted by threats or promises are inadmissible at trial.


End of Pre- Civil War Judicial Service to the State of Florida

With the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Finley left service to the Western Judicial Circuit of Florida.


Service to the Confederate States of America (1861 to 1865)


Judicial Service

Finley was appointed judge of the
Confederate States The Confederate States of America (CSA), also known as the Confederate States (C.S.), the Confederacy, or Dixieland, was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States from 1861 to 1865. It comprised eleven U.S. states th ...
court for the district of Florida in 1861. He resigned in March 1862 to join the Confederate Army.


Military service

Finley volunteered as a private in the 6th Florida Infantry of the Confederate Army, and was successively promoted to be the
colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...
of the regiment. He took part in the
Kentucky Campaign The Confederate Heartland Offensive (August 14 – October 10, 1862), also known as the Kentucky Campaign, was an American Civil War campaign conducted by the Confederate States Army in Tennessee and Kentucky where Generals Braxton Bragg and ...
in Maj. Gen.
Edmund Kirby Smith Edmund Kirby Smith (May 16, 1824March 28, 1893) was a General officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate States Army Four-star rank, general, who oversaw the Trans-Mississippi Department (comprising Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, western L ...
's column. His first significant combat came at the
Battle of Chickamauga The Battle of Chickamauga, fought on September 18–20, 1863, between the United States Army and Confederate States Army, Confederate forces in the American Civil War, marked the end of a U.S. Army offensive, the Chickamauga Campaign, in southe ...
, where his regiment captured a battery of Union artillery, but was unsupported and forced to withdraw with 165 casualties. He was promoted to brigadier general on November 8, 1863 (with date of rank of November 16), commanding all of the Florida infantry in the
Army of Tennessee The Army of Tennessee was a Field army, field army of the Confederate States Army in the Western theater of the American Civil War, Western Theater of the American Civil War. Named for the Confederate States of America, Confederate state of Tenn ...
. Finley's Brigade, part of Maj. Gen.
John C. Breckinridge John Cabell Breckinridge (January 16, 1821 – May 17, 1875) was an American politician who served as the 14th vice president of the United States, with President James Buchanan, from 1857 to 1861. Assuming office at the age of 36, Breckinrid ...
's division, was caught up in the Confederate rout at the
Battle of Missionary Ridge The Battle of Missionary Ridge, also known as the Battle of Chattanooga, was fought on November 25, 1863, as part of the Chattanooga campaign of the American Civil War. Following the Union Army, Union victory in the Battle of Lookout Mountain on ...
, but performed well in protecting the rearguard of the army as it withdrew. Army commander Gen.
Braxton Bragg Braxton Bragg (March 22, 1817 – September 27, 1876) was an American army Officer (armed forces), officer during the Second Seminole War and Mexican–American War and Confederate General officers in the Confederate States Army, general in th ...
expressed his thanks to Finley for "his gallant bearing and prompt assistance in every emergency." Finley's brigade saw heavy fighting in the Atlanta Campaign of 1864. He was badly wounded at
Battle of Resaca The Battle of Resaca, from May 13 to 15, 1864, formed part of the Atlanta Campaign during the American Civil War, when a Union force under William Tecumseh Sherman engaged the Confederate Army of Tennessee led by Joseph E. Johnston. The battle ...
and placed on medical leave until the army reached
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. At the
Battle of Jonesborough The Battle of Jonesborough (August 31–September 1, 1864) was fought between Union Army forces led by William Tecumseh Sherman and Confederate States of America, Confederate forces under William J. Hardee during the Atlanta Campaign in the Am ...
, his horse was killed by artillery shell fragments, which severely wounded him again, but he refused to be evacuated to Atlanta until all of his wounded men had been taken care of. Finley was unable to return to his brigade for the remainder of the war. He tried to reach it in North Carolina after he recovered from a second wound, but Federal troops blocked his way.


Military Surrender

Finley surrendered with Maj. Gen.
Howell Cobb Howell Cobb (September 7, 1815 – October 9, 1868) was an American and later Confederate political figure. A southern Democrat, Cobb was a five-term member of the United States House of Representatives and the speaker of the House from 1849 to ...
in
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, and was paroled to
Quincy, Florida Quincy is a city in and the county seat of Gadsden County, Florida, United States. Quincy is part of the Tallahassee metropolitan area, Tallahassee, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,970 as of the 2020 census, almost eve ...
, on May 23, 1865.


Congressional Service to the United States of America (1876 to 1882)

Finley successfully contested the election of Josiah T. Walls to the
44th United States Congress The 44th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1875, ...
. Walls, a black Republican, was unseated after party-line vote of the congressional committee elected to throw out votes from a predominantly black district that favored Walls 568 to 11 for Finley. Finley served in the United States House of Representatives during the 44th, 45th, and
47th United States Congress The 47th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1881, ...
as a member of the
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. Finley served from April 19, 1876, to March 3, 1877. Finley successfully contested the election of Horatio Bisbee, Jr. to the
45th United States Congress The 45th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1877, ...
and served from February 20 to March 3, 1879. He presented credentials as a Member-elect to the
47th United States Congress The 47th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1881, ...
and served from March 4, 1881, to June 1, 1882, when he was succeeded by Horatio Bisbee, Jr., who successfully contested Finley's election. Finley presented credentials on December 5, 1887, as a Senator-designate to the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
for the term commencing March 4, 1887, but was not permitted to qualify because the appointment was made before the vacancy occurred.


Electoral history


Personal life

Finley had a son, Charles A. Finley, who served as an administrator at
Florida Agricultural College The history of the University of Florida is firmly tied to the history of public education in the state of Florida. The University of Florida originated as several distinct institutions that were consolidated to create a single state-supported u ...
, and a daughter.


Death (1904)

Finley died on November 6, 1904, in Lake City, Florida. He was interred to Evergreen Cemetery in
Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...
.


Legacy

In the 1930s, the School Board of Alachua County (Florida) named an elementary school for Finley. JJ Finley Elementary School was located in
Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...
, at the corner of Northwest 5th Avenue and 19th Street, about 1 kilometer north of the
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
. On June 16, 2020, the School Board of Alachua County (Florida) removed J.J. Finley's name from the school, during protests associated with the
murder of George Floyd On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old White police officer. Floyd had been arrested after a store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a c ...
. The School Board will convene a citizen committee to recommend a new name by August 2020. In January 2019, the Gainesville City Commission named a city park in honor of Finley. The vote to name the park for Finley was unanimous. In February 2020, the City of Gainesville City Commission removed Finley's name from the park, by a unanimous vote. The City process to approve a new name required input from a citizen advisory board. The City suspended advisory board activity during the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United States On December 31, 2019, China announced the discovery of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan. The first American case was reported on January 20, and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Human Services Secreta ...
. The park remained unnamed through the pandemic. The Gainesville Sun inaccurately reported that the playground was renamed "as part of the city of Gainesville and Alachua County's truth and reconciliation process".


See also

*
List of American Civil War generals (Confederate) Confederate generals __NOTOC__ * Assigned to duty by E. Kirby Smith * Incomplete appointments * State militia generals The Confederate and United States processes for appointment, nomination and confirmation of general officers were essential ...


References

* Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, . * Jones, Terry L., "Jesse Johnson Finley", ''The Confederate General'', Vol. 2, Davis, William C., and Julie Hoffman (eds.), National Historical Society, 1991, . * Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. . Retrieved on 2008-02-13 * Hardy, D.C., "Simon, A Slave v. The State of Florida: The Precedent-Setting Decision Establishing Confessions Extracted by Threats or Promises Are Inadmissible at Trial", Florida Bar Review, 2019, vol. 93, no. 5, available a
Simon, A Slave v. The State of Florida: The Precedent-Setting Decision Establishing Confessions Extracted by Threats or Promises Are Inadmissible at Trial


Notes

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Finley, Jesse J. 1812 births 1904 deaths Florida Whigs Members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida Confederate States Army generals Judges of the Confederate States of America People of Florida in the American Civil War American lawyers Mayors of Memphis, Tennessee People from Lebanon, Tennessee Florida state senators Arkansas state senators American people of the Seminole Wars Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida People from Marianna, Florida 19th-century mayors of places in Tennessee 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Florida Legislature 19th-century members of the Arkansas General Assembly