John Isaac Guion (November 18, 1802 – June 6, 1855) was an American politician from

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

who served as

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

in 1851.

Biography

Guion was born in Adams County in the

Mississippi Territory The Territory of Mississippi was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that was created under an organic act passed by the United States Congress, Congress of the United States. It was approved and signed into law by Presiden ...

to Sarah Lewis and U.S. Army officer and planter Isaac Guion. He studied law in

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 ...

along with

William L. Sharkey William Lewis Sharkey (July 12, 1798 – March 30, 1873) was an American judge and politician from Mississippi. A staunch Unionist during the American Civil War, he opposed the 1861 declared secession of Mississippi from the United States. Aft ...

, was admitted to the bar, and established a successful practice in

Vicksburg, Mississippi Vicksburg is a historic city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the county seat. The population was 21,573 at the 2020 census. Located on a high bluff on the east bank of the Mississippi River across from Louisiana, Vicksburg ...

. He practiced in partnership with Sharkey and later with

Seargent Smith Prentiss Seargent Smith Prentiss (September 30, 1808July 1, 1850) was an American attorney and politician. He served as a state representative in Mississippi and then was elected in 1838 as US representative from the state in the Twenty-fifth United St ...

. John Isaac Guion was elected mayor of Natchez, Mississippi for the 1825–26 term. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

in politics, Guion was first elected to the

Mississippi State Senate The Mississippi State Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate, along with the Lower house, lower Mississippi House of Represen ...

in 1842. He later moved to

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

, and continued to serve in the State Senate. Guion supported slavery and states' rights. As a result, he played a prominent role in the Jackson convention of 1849, which was called to discuss how the Southern states should respond to the possibility of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

being admitted to the union as a free state. In 1850 Guion was chosen to serve as the Senate's President pro tempore. In February 1851, Governor John A. Quitman resigned to defend himself against charges of aiding in filibustering expeditions against Spanish rule in Cuba. Guion became acting governor and served until November when his Senate term expired. He had not run for reelection, and the Speaker of the Mississippi House had also not. Since no one in the line of succession could assume the governorship, the legislature subsequently chose James Whitfield as an interim replacement, and he served until the term of the new governor started in 1852. Guion had not run for reelection to the State Senate because he had run for the Mississippi District Circuit Court judge in Jackson. He began his term as scheduled and served until his death. He died on June 6, 1855, and was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Jackson. He was remembered as handsome, courteous, "an effective jury lawyer, a social favorite...and a true gentleman of much ability."

References

John Isaac Guion
at
National Governors Association
'

(including burial information for John Isaac Guion) at
Greenwood Cemetery
' * 1802 births 1855 deaths Democratic Party governors of Mississippi Democratic Party Mississippi state senators 19th-century members of the Mississippi Legislature Mayors of places in Mississippi {{Mississippi-politician-stub