John Lawrence Manning (sometimes spelled John Laurence Manning) (January 29, 1816October 24, 1889) was the 65th

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 ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

, from 1854 to 1856, and, though elected to the U.S. Senate in 1865, was refused a seat there because of his former

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

allegiance.

Background and career

He was born in Clarendon County, son of Richard Irvine Manning and Elizabeth Peyre (Richardson) Manning. His father was the Governor of South Carolina from 1824 to 1826. John Manning attended

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

and obtained a degree from South Carolina College, where he was a member of the

Euphradian Society The Euphradian Society, also known as Phi Alpha Epsilon (), is a collegiate debating and literary society founded in 1806 at the University of South Carolina, then known as South Carolina College. History The Euphradian Society was formed as ...

. A Democrat, he was a member of the

South Carolina House of Representatives The South Carolina House of Representatives is the lower house of the South Carolina General Assembly. It consists of 124 representatives elected to two-year terms at the same time as U.S. congressional elections. Unlike many legislatures, seatin ...

from 1842 to 1846 and of the

South Carolina Senate The South Carolina State Senate is the upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly, the lower house being the South Carolina House of Representatives. It consists of 46 senators elected from single member districts for four-year terms at ...

from 1846 to 1852. After his single term as governor, the state constitution made him ineligible for immediate re-election. He was a signer of South Carolina's

ordinance of secession An Ordinance of Secession was the name given to multiple resolutions drafted and ratified in 1860 and 1861, at or near the beginning of the American Civil War, by which each seceding slave-holding Southern state or territory formally Secession in ...

in 1860. 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 ...

, while serving again in the South Carolina Senate from 1861 to 1865, Manning was also a

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 ...

on the staff of

P.G.T. Beauregard Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard (May 28, 1818 – February 20, 1893) was an American military officer known as being the Confederate general who started the American Civil War at the battle of Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Today, he is comm ...

, a

general. In 1865, after the war, the state General Assembly elected him 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 ...

but, because of his prominent role in South Carolina's secession and the ensuing war, the Senate refused him a seat. He served again in the state house of representatives from 1865 to 1867 and, after the withdrawal of Union troops, in the state senate from 1877 to '78. In an elite planter society that prided itself on its social grace, Manning was noted for his appealing appearance and demeanor, which possessed one observer to ask, "Who that has ever met him can be indifferent to the charms of manner and of personal appearance, which render the ex-Governor of the state so attractive?" In her famous

diary A diary is a written or audiovisual memorable record, with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwritten but are now also often digita ...

, Mary Chesnut called Manning "the handsomest man alive."

Marriages and children

In 1838, John L. Manning married Susan Frances Hampton (1816–1845), daughter of General

Wade Hampton I Wade Hampton (February 4, 1835) was an American military officer, planter and politician. A two-term U.S. congressman, he may have been the wealthiest planter, and one of the largest slave holders in the United States, at the time of his death. ...

and his wife, Mary Cantey, and half-sister of Colonel Wade Hampton II, who though he alone inherited their father's considerable fortune, shared it equally with her and another sister. She died giving birth to their third child. In 1848 Manning married Sally Bland Clarke and had four children by her.Smith, Thomas Gordon, ''Living with antiques: Millford Plantation in South Carolina'', Antiques Magazine, May, 1997
During his term in office, he resided at the Preston C. Lorick House.

Millford Plantation

John Manning and his wife, Susan, had Millford Plantation built in 1839 near Pinewood, South Carolina. It is now a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

Slave owner

According to the 1860 United States Slave Census Schedule, John Manning owned 670 enslaved African-Americans, making him the 6th largest American slave owner at the time.*

Burial

He is interred in the churchyard at Trinity Episcopal Church in Columbia, South Carolina.

Honors

The town of

Manning, South Carolina Manning is a city in and the county seat of Clarendon County, South Carolina, Clarendon County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 3,245 as of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, with an estimated population in 2018 of 3,94 ...

was named for him.Names in the Old Sumter District
/ref>

References

External links

NGA Biography of John Lawrence Manning
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Manning, John 1816 births 1889 deaths Confederate States Army officers Democratic Party governors of South Carolina Democratic Party United States senators from South Carolina High Hills of Santee Democratic Party members of the South Carolina House of Representatives People from Clarendon County, South Carolina People from Pinewood, South Carolina People of South Carolina in the American Civil War Princeton University alumni Democratic Party South Carolina state senators University of South Carolina alumni University of South Carolina trustees United States senators who owned slaves Members of the United States Senate declared not entitled to their seat 19th-century members of the South Carolina General Assembly