Armistead Thomson Mason (August 4, 1787 – February 6, 1819), the son of
Stevens Thomson MasonStevens Thomson Mason was a Colonel in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, a member of the Virginia state legislature and a Republican U.S. Senator from Virginia .-Early life and military career:...
, was a
U.S. SenatorThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution . Each U.S state is represented by two senators,...
from
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
from 1816 to 1817.
He was born at Armisteads in
Louisa CountyLouisa County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the population was 25,627. The 2008 estimate is 31,000. The county seat is Louisa.- History :...
,
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
, graduated from the
College of William and MaryThe College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
in 1807 and engaged in agricultural pursuits until he became colonel of Virginia Volunteers in the
War of 1812The War of 1812, between the United States of America and the British Empire , lasted from 1812 to 1815. It was fought chiefly on the Atlantic Ocean and on the land, coasts and waterways of North America.There were several immediate stated causes for the U.S...
and subsequently brigadier general of
Virginia MilitiaThe Virginia militia is an armed force composed of all citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia capable of bearing arms. The Virginia militia was established in 1607 as part of the British militia system. Militia service in Virginia was compulsory for all free males...
.
He was elected as a
RepublicanThe Democratic-Republican Party was founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison around 1792. Supporters usually identified themselves as Republicans, but sometimes as Democrats. The term "Democratic Republican" was also used by contemporaries, but mostly by the party's opponents...
to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of
William Branch GilesWilliam Branch Giles was an American statesman, long-term Senator from Virginia, and Governor of Virginia...
, serving from January 3, 1816, to March 3, 1817.
Armistead Thomson Mason (August 4, 1787 – February 6, 1819), the son of
Stevens Thomson MasonStevens Thomson Mason was a Colonel in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, a member of the Virginia state legislature and a Republican U.S. Senator from Virginia .-Early life and military career:...
, was a
U.S. SenatorThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution . Each U.S state is represented by two senators,...
from
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
from 1816 to 1817.
Early life and education
He was born at Armisteads in
Louisa CountyLouisa County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the population was 25,627. The 2008 estimate is 31,000. The county seat is Louisa.- History :...
,
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
, graduated from the
College of William and MaryThe College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
in 1807 and engaged in agricultural pursuits until he became colonel of Virginia Volunteers in the
War of 1812The War of 1812, between the United States of America and the British Empire , lasted from 1812 to 1815. It was fought chiefly on the Atlantic Ocean and on the land, coasts and waterways of North America.There were several immediate stated causes for the U.S...
and subsequently brigadier general of
Virginia MilitiaThe Virginia militia is an armed force composed of all citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia capable of bearing arms. The Virginia militia was established in 1607 as part of the British militia system. Militia service in Virginia was compulsory for all free males...
.
Political career
He was elected as a
RepublicanThe Democratic-Republican Party was founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison around 1792. Supporters usually identified themselves as Republicans, but sometimes as Democrats. The term "Democratic Republican" was also used by contemporaries, but mostly by the party's opponents...
to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of
William Branch GilesWilliam Branch Giles was an American statesman, long-term Senator from Virginia, and Governor of Virginia...
, serving from January 3, 1816, to March 3, 1817. He then moved to
Loudoun CountyLoudoun County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and is part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. As of July 1, 2008, the county is estimated to be home to 289,995 people, a 71 percent increase over the 2000 figure of 169,599. That increase makes the county the fourth...
, Virginia where he was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the Fifteenth Congress (1816). It was a bitter campaign that gave rise to several duels: Mason himself was later killed in a duel with his brother-in-law, John Mason McCarty, at Bladensburg Duelling Field,
MarylandMaryland is a state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia to the south and west, Pennsylvania to the north, and Delaware to the east. It is comparable in size to the European country of Belgium. According to the U.S...
, as a result of this campaign. He is buried in the churchyard of the Episcopal Church at
LeesburgLeesburg is a historic town in, and county seat of, Loudoun County, Virginia, United States of America. Leesburg is located approximately west-northwest of Washington, D.C. along the base of the Catoctin Mountain and adjacent to the Potomac River...
, Virginia.
Marriage and children
Mason married on 1 May 1817 to Charlotte Eliza Taylor (died 1846) at Dr. Charles Cocke's in
Albemarle CountyAlbemarle County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Figures from the U.S. Census Bureau give an estimated 2008 population of 94,075...
, Virginia. The couple had one son:
- Stevens Thomson Mason (1819–14 June 1847)
Relations
Armistead Thomson Mason was the grandnephew of
George MasonGeorge Mason IV was an American patriot, statesman, and delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention...
(1725–1792); grandson of
Thomson MasonThomson Mason was a prominent Virginia lawyer, jurist, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia. Mason was a younger brother of George Mason IV, United States patriot, statesman, and delegate from Virginia to the U.S...
(1733–1785); son of Mary Elizabeth "Polly" Armistead Mason (1760–1825) and
Stevens Thomson MasonStevens Thomson Mason was a Colonel in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, a member of the Virginia state legislature and a Republican U.S. Senator from Virginia .-Early life and military career:...
(1760–1803); nephew of
John Thomson MasonJohn Thomson Mason, Jr. was a U.S. Congressman from Maryland, representing the sixth district from 1841 to 1843.-Early life and education:...
(1765–1824); second cousin of
Thomson Francis MasonThomson Francis Mason was a prominent jurist, lawyer, councilman, judge, and the mayor of Alexandria, District of Columbia between 1827 and 1830.-Early life and education:...
(1785–1838) and James Murray Mason (1798–1871); brother-in-law of
William Taylor BarryWilliam Taylor Barry was an American statesman and jurist.Born near Lunenburg, Virginia, he moved to Fayette County, Kentucky, in 1796 with his parents John Barry, an American Revolutionary War veteran, and Susannah Barry...
(1784–1835); brother of
John Thomson MasonJohn Thomson Mason was an American lawyer, United States marshal, Secretary of Michigan Territory from 1830 through 1831, land agent, and an important figure in the Texas Revolution.-Early life and education:...
(1787–1850); uncle of
Stevens Thomson MasonStevens Thomson Mason , also known as Stevens T. Mason, Tom Mason, The Boy Governor, and lesser known nicknames Young Hotspur and The Stripling, was the territorial governor of the Michigan Territory, and later governor of the state of Michigan. Mason guided the Michigan Territory into statehood...
(1811–1843); and first cousin of John Thomson Mason, Jr. (1815–1873).
Ancestry