Thomas Menees (June 26, 1823 – September 6, 1905) was a

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 ...

politician who represented

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

in the

Confederate States Congress The Confederate States Congress was both the provisional and permanent legislative assembly/legislature of the Confederate States of America that existed from February 1861 to April/June 1865, during the American Civil War. Its actions were, ...

during much of 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 ...

. He was trained as physician, and between 1874 and 1895 served as the dean of the merged medical departments of the

University of Nashville University of Nashville was a private university in Nashville, Tennessee. It was established in 1806 as Cumberland College. It existed as a distinct entity until 1909; operating at various times a medical school, a four-year military college, a ...

and

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

Early life

Menees was born on June 26, 1823, in

Davidson County, Tennessee Davidson County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is located in the heart of Middle Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 715,884, making it the 2nd most populous county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Nashville, ...

. He earned his M.D. degree from

Transylvania University Transylvania University is a private university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It was founded in 1780 and is the oldest university in Kentucky. It offers 46 major programs, as well as dual-degree engineering programs, and is Higher educ ...

in 1846.

Career

Menees began his career as a physician in

Springfield, Tennessee Springfield is the county seat of Robertson County, Tennessee, United States. It is located in Middle Tennessee near the northern border of the state. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 18,782. History US 431 and US 4 ...

. Menees was elected as a Democratic member of the

Tennessee State Senate The Tennessee Senate is the upper house of the U.S. state of Tennessee's state legislature, which is known formally as the Tennessee General Assembly. The Tennessee Senate has the power to pass resolutions concerning essentially any issue reg ...

in 1857. During the

, he represented Tennessee in the

First Confederate Congress The 1st Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, convened between February 18, 1862, and February 17, 1864. This assembly took place during the first two years ...

and the

Second Confederate Congress The 2nd Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, met from May 2, 1864, to March 18, 1865, during the last year of Jefferson Davis's presidency, at the Virginia ...

from 1862 to 1865. After the war, Menees became a physician in Nashville. He was a professor of

Obstretics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgic ...

at the

and

. In 1874, the medical departments of both universities were merged and Menees became their dean. He held this position until 1895.

Death

Menees died on September 6, 1905, in Nashville, Tennessee. He was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Menees, Thomas 1823 births 1905 deaths People from Davidson County, Tennessee Democratic Party Tennessee state senators Members of the Confederate House of Representatives from Tennessee Vanderbilt University faculty American obstetricians 19th-century American physicians Physicians from Tennessee 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century Tennessee politicians