Henry Cornelius Burnett
Encyclopedia
Henry Cornelius Burnett (October 5, 1825 – September 28, 1866) was a U.S. Representative
from the state
of Kentucky
and a Confederate States Senator. A lawyer by profession, Burnett had held only one public office—circuit court clerk—before being elected to Congress. He represented Kentucky's 1st congressional district
during the lead-up to the Civil War
. This district contained the entire Jackson Purchase
region of the state, which was more sympathetic to the Confederate
cause than any other area of Kentucky. Burnett promised the voters of his district that he would have President
Abraham Lincoln
arraigned
for treason
. Unionist newspaper editor George D. Prentice
described Burnett as "a big, burly, loud-mouthed fellow who is forever raising points of order
and objections, to embarrass the Republicans
in the House".
Besides championing the Southern cause in Congress, Burnett also worked within Kentucky to bolster the state's support of the Confederacy. He presided over a sovereignty convention in Russellville
in 1861 that formed a Confederate government
for the state. The delegates to this convention chose Burnett to travel to Richmond, Virginia
to secure Kentucky's admission to the Confederacy. Burnett also raised a Confederate regiment
at Hopkinsville, Kentucky
, and briefly served in the Confederate States Army
. Camp Burnett, a Confederate recruiting post located two miles west of Clinton
in Hickman County, Kentucky
, was named for him.
Burnett's actions were deemed treasonable by his colleagues in Congress, and he was expelled
from the House in 1861. He is one of only five members of the House of Representatives ever to be expelled. Following his expulsion, Burnett served in the Provisional Confederate Congress
and the First and Second Confederate Senates. After the war, he was indicted for treason, but was never tried. He returned to the practice of law, but died of cholera
in 1866 at the age of 40.
. In his early childhood, he moved to Cadiz, Kentucky
with his family. He was educated in the common schools of the area and at an academy in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Following this, he studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1847, and commenced practice at Cadiz. He was a member of the Cadiz Christian Church.
On April 13, 1847, Burnett married Mary A. Terry, the daughter of a prominent Cadiz merchant. They had four children: John, Emeline, Henry, and Terry (who died shortly after birth). The younger Henry Burnett became a successful lawyer in Paducah
and, later, Louisville
.
In the first election following the ratification of the Kentucky Constitution
of 1850, Burnett was elected clerk of the circuit court
of Trigg County, Kentucky
over James E. Thompson. He resigned in 1853 to run for Congress. Later that year, he was elected as a Democrat
to the Thirty-fourth Congress, succeeding Speaker of the House
Linn Boyd
. He was re-elected to the three succeeding Congresses; during the Thirty-fifth Congress, he chaired the Committee of Enquiry regarding the sale of Fort Snelling and served on the Committee on the District of Columbia.
for president in the 1860 presidential election
, but Breckinridge lost to Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln had campaigned against the expansion of slavery beyond the states in which it already existed. His victory in the election resulted in seven Southern states declaring their secession
from the Union. Despite this, most Americans believed the Union could still be saved. Burnett, however, disagreed. In the January 7, 1861 issue of Paducah's Tri-Weekly Herald, he declared that "There is not the slightest hope of any settlement or adjustment of existing troubles." Despite his pessimism, Burnett endorsed the ill-fated Peace Conference of 1861
.
Following the rapid secessions of Mississippi
, Florida
, Alabama
, Georgia
, Louisiana
, and Texas
, Congress began preparing the nation for war, including by strengthening the army
and navy
and raising funds for the treasury. Burnett attempted to circumvent these measures by proposing an amendment stipulating that none of these new appropriations could be used to subdue or make war against any of the southern states, but the amendment was defeated.
To avert war, the Kentucky General Assembly
called for a meeting of border states to convene in Frankfort
on May 27. Kentucky's twelve delegates to the convention were to be chosen by special election on May 4. However, after the Confederates fired on Fort Sumter
on April 12, the secessionist candidates withdrew from the election. Expressing the view of the majority of these delegates, Burnett opined in the Tri-Weekly Herald that the convention would not occur. He was wrong; the convention was held as scheduled, but it failed to accomplish anything of significance.
courthouse in Mayfield
. The purpose of the meeting was ostensibly to re-nominate Burnett for his congressional seat, but some Unionists believed an ulterior motive was in play. George D. Prentice
, editor of the Unionist Louisville Journal, wrote on May 21, 1861 that "the object of [the Mayfield Convention], though not officially explained, is believed to be the separation of the First District from Kentucky if Kentucky remains in the Union, and its annexation to Tennessee
".
Most of the records of the Mayfield Convention were lost, presumably in a fire that destroyed the courthouse in 1864. The most extensive surviving record comes from the notes of James Beadles, a Unionist observer of the proceedings. After a number of speeches were delivered, a majority committee chaired by Paducah circuit judge James Campbell presented a report containing seven resolutions. The resolutions declared the region's sympathy with the South, although it pledged to abide by Kentucky's present policy of neutrality. It condemned President Lincoln for waging an unjust war and praised Governor
Beriah Magoffin
for refusing Lincoln's call for troops. The report also condemned the federal government for arming Union sympathizers in the state with so-called "Lincoln guns". A minority committee report was given by Ballard County
resident and future U.S. Representative Oscar Turner
. This report called Kentucky's neutrality "futile" and "cowardly", promised to fight off any invasion by the North, and recommended calling for aid from Tennessee and the Confederate States in the event of such an invasion. It further warned that if the entire state did not adopt this position, the Purchase region would secede and align itself with Tennessee.
Burnett, along with Lyon County
's Willis B. Machen and Union County
's Benjamin P. Cissell, initially endorsed Campbell's majority report. After some debate, Burnett proposed four resolutions in lieu of both reports. The resolutions condemned President Lincoln for the war against the South and the federal government for the provision of the "Lincoln guns". They also praised Governor Magoffin for rebuffing Lincoln's call for troops and encouraged him to drive away any Union invasion of the state. Burnett's resolutions were passed by large margins in preference to both the majority and minority reports.
Finally, the convention turned to the issue of nominating Burnett. Four others, including Turner, Machen, and Cissell, were also offered as nominees. Burnett received 124 of 155 votes on the first ballot and was chosen unanimously on the second ballot. In his acceptance speech, Burnett declared that he was undecided as to whether he would take the oath of office if elected. This statement alluded to an earlier comment by Turner that "no man who is engaged in the cause of the South could go to Congress and take the oath of office without perjuring
himself". Burnett promised that if he did assume his seat, he was determined to arraign President Lincoln for treason.
In the special elections, Burnett defeated Lawrence Trimble of Paducah. He was the only states' rights
candidate elected in the statewide canvass. He won handily in the Jackson Purchase region, which was by far the most pro-Southern area of the state. However, outside the Purchase, he won only his home county of Trigg, and that by a slim margin of twenty votes. (Besides the Purchase counties, the First District also included Caldwell
, Crittenden
, Hopkins
, Livingston
, Lyon, Trigg, Union, and Webster
counties.)
Burnett took his seat in the Thirty-seventh Congress; sources make no mention of his making good on his threat not to take the oath of office. Just days after the First Battle of Bull Run
, Burnett's fellow Kentuckian, John J. Crittenden
proposed a resolution blaming the war on the disloyal Southerners and defining the war's aim as preservation of the Union without interfering with the rights or institutions of the states. Burnett asked that the question be divided
. His request was granted, but he only found one colleague willing to vote with him against blaming Southerners for the war.
Leonidas Polk
violated Kentucky's neutrality by ordering Brigadier General
Gideon Johnson Pillow
to occupy Columbus
. In response, Ulysses S. Grant
captured Paducah on September 6, 1861. With neutrality no longer a tenable option, Burnett presided over a conference of Kentucky's Southern sympathizers that occurred at Russellville between October 29 and October 31, 1861. The self-appointed delegates to this conference called for a sovereignty convention on November 18, 1861 for the purpose of establishing a Confederate government for the state.
In the interim between the two conventions, Burnett traveled to Hopkinsville, where he and Colonel
W.C.P. Breckinridge raised a Confederate regiment dubbed the 8th Kentucky Infantry
. On November 11, 1861, Burnett himself enlisted in the Confederate States Army
at Camp Alcorn; he was chosen as colonel of the 8th Kentucky, but never took command.
The sovereignty convention gathered at the William Forst House
in Russellville as scheduled on November 18, 1861. Burnett also presided over this convention. Fearing for the safety of the delegates, he first proposed postponing proceedings until January 8, 1862, but Scott County
's George W. Johnson convinced the majority of the delegates to continue. By the third day, the military situation was so tenuous that the entire convention had to be moved to a tower on the campus of Bethel Female College
, a now-defunct institution in Russellville.
The convention passed an ordinance of secession and established a provisional Confederate government for Kentucky. Burnett, William Preston
of Fayette County
and William E. Simms
of Bourbon County
were chosen as commissioners for the provisional government and were dispatched to Richmond, Virginia to negotiate with Confederate President Jefferson Davis
to secure Kentucky's admission to the Confederacy. For reasons unexplained by the delegates, Dr. Luke P. Blackburn
, a native Kentuckian living in Mississippi
, was invited to accompany the commissioners. Despite the fact that Kentucky's elected government in Frankfort
had opposed secession, the commissioners convinced Davis to recommend Kentucky's admission to the Confederacy; the Confederate Congress officially admitted Kentucky on December 10, 1861.
Following his successful mission to Richmond, Burnett joined the 8th Kentucky at Fort Donelson
. On February 16, 1862, Ulysses S. Grant
led a combined Federal army-navy attack against the fort. Most of the Confederate garrison was captured, including the 8th Kentucky, but Burnett escaped in general John B. Floyd
's retreat following the defeat. This battle ended Burnett's military service.
Burnett's subversive activities did not go unnoticed by his colleagues in Congress. He was absent when the body reconvened December 2, 1861. The following day, Indiana
representative W. McKee Dunn
introduced a resolution to expel Burnett from Congress. The resolution passed easily, removing Burnett from the seat he had occupied continuously since 1855.
and Second Confederate Congress
es, serving from February 19, 1862 to February 18, 1865. In the Confederate Senate, he served on the Engrossment and Enrollment and Military Affairs Committees.
On March 29, Confederate president Jefferson Davis called on the Confederate Congress to pass a conscription
bill. The bill would require a three-year term of service for all able-bodied, white men between the ages of eighteen and thirty-five. At first, the bill was unpopular, but as the military situation grew more dire for the Confederacy, both houses quickly passed it. Still, the measure caused some to question Davis' military decisions. Among these was Burnett, usually one of Davis' staunchest allies. In an April 19, 1862 address to the legislature, Burnett denounced Davis' preference for those who were, like Davis himself, graduates of West Point
. The speech drew such a vigorous positive response from the gallery that some of the most zealous had to be removed.
Following the conclusion of the Civil War, Burnett sought an audience with President Andrew Johnson
, an old congressional colleague, but Johnson told him to go home. He was indicted for treason at Louisville, but was released on bond and never prosecuted. He partnered with Judge John R. Grace and resumed the practice of law in Cadiz. He died of cholera in Hopkinsville on September 28, 1866. Initially buried in the Old Cadiz Cemetery, he was moved to the East End Cemetery in Cadiz. His tombstone bears no mention of his Confederate service.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from the state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
and a Confederate States Senator. A lawyer by profession, Burnett had held only one public office—circuit court clerk—before being elected to Congress. He represented Kentucky's 1st congressional district
Kentucky's 1st congressional district
Kentucky's 1st congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Located in Western Kentucky, the district takes in Henderson, Hopkinsville, Madisonville, Paducah, and the college town of Murray....
during the lead-up to the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This district contained the entire Jackson Purchase
Jackson Purchase
The Jackson Purchase is a region in the state of Kentucky bounded by the Mississippi River to the west, the Ohio River to the north, and Tennessee River to the east. Although technically part of Kentucky at its statehood in 1792, the land did not come under definitive U.S. control until 1818, when...
region of the state, which was more sympathetic to the Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
cause than any other area of Kentucky. Burnett promised the voters of his district that he would have President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
arraigned
Arraignment
Arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal complaint in the presence of the defendant to inform the defendant of the charges against him or her. In response to arraignment, the accused is expected to enter a plea...
for treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
. Unionist newspaper editor George D. Prentice
George D. Prentice
George Dennison Prentice was the editor of the Louisville Journal, which he built into a major newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky. He attracted readers by satire as well as exaggerated reporting and support of the Know-Nothing Party in the 1850s. His writing was said to contribute to rabid...
described Burnett as "a big, burly, loud-mouthed fellow who is forever raising points of order
Point of order
A point of order is a matter raised during consideration of a motion concerning the rules of parliamentary procedure.-Explanation and uses:A point of order may be raised if the rules appear to have been broken. This may interrupt a speaker during debate, or anything else if the breach of the rules...
and objections, to embarrass the Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
in the House".
Besides championing the Southern cause in Congress, Burnett also worked within Kentucky to bolster the state's support of the Confederacy. He presided over a sovereignty convention in Russellville
Russellville, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 7,149 people, 3,064 households, and 1,973 families residing in the city. The population density was 672.1 people per square mile . There were 3,458 housing units at an average density of 325.1 per square mile...
in 1861 that formed a Confederate government
Confederate government of Kentucky
The Confederate government of Kentucky was a shadow government established for the Commonwealth of Kentucky by a self-constituted group of Confederate sympathizers during the American Civil War. The shadow government never replaced the elected government in Frankfort, which had strong Union...
for the state. The delegates to this convention chose Burnett to travel to Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
to secure Kentucky's admission to the Confederacy. Burnett also raised a Confederate regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
at Hopkinsville, Kentucky
Hopkinsville, Kentucky
Hopkinsville is a city in Christian County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 31,577 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Christian County.- History :...
, and briefly served in the Confederate States Army
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
. Camp Burnett, a Confederate recruiting post located two miles west of Clinton
Clinton, Kentucky
Clinton is a city in Hickman County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,415 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hickman County, and the site of a Federal Courthouse for the Western District of Kentucky....
in Hickman County, Kentucky
Hickman County, Kentucky
Hickman County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1822. The elevation in the county ranges from to above sea level. As of 2000, the population was 5,262. Its county seat is Clinton. It is the least densely populated county in the state and is a prohibition or...
, was named for him.
Burnett's actions were deemed treasonable by his colleagues in Congress, and he was expelled
Expulsion from the United States Congress
Expulsion is the most serious form of disciplinary action that can be taken against a Member of Congress. Article I, Section 5 of the United States Constitution provides that "Each House [of Congress] may determine the Rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with...
from the House in 1861. He is one of only five members of the House of Representatives ever to be expelled. Following his expulsion, Burnett served in the Provisional Confederate Congress
Provisional Confederate Congress
The Provisional Confederate Congress, for a time the legislative branch of the Confederate States of America, was the body which drafted the Confederate Constitution, elected Jefferson Davis President of the Confederacy, and designed the first Confederate flag...
and the First and Second Confederate Senates. After the war, he was indicted for treason, but was never tried. He returned to the practice of law, but died of cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
in 1866 at the age of 40.
Early life and political career
Henry Cornelius Burnett was born to Dr. Isaac and Martha F. (Garrett) Burnett on October 5, 1825 in Essex County, VirginiaEssex County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,989 people, 3,995 households, and 2,740 families residing in the county. The population density was 39 people per square mile . There were 4,926 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile...
. In his early childhood, he moved to Cadiz, Kentucky
Cadiz, Kentucky
Cadiz is a city in Trigg County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,373 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Trigg County. It is an old town located close to the Land Between the Lakes, a popular recreation area, and was a base of Union and Confederate operations in the American...
with his family. He was educated in the common schools of the area and at an academy in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Following this, he studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1847, and commenced practice at Cadiz. He was a member of the Cadiz Christian Church.
On April 13, 1847, Burnett married Mary A. Terry, the daughter of a prominent Cadiz merchant. They had four children: John, Emeline, Henry, and Terry (who died shortly after birth). The younger Henry Burnett became a successful lawyer in Paducah
Paducah, Kentucky
Paducah is the largest city in Kentucky's Jackson Purchase Region and the county seat of McCracken County, Kentucky, United States. It is located at the confluence of the Tennessee River and the Ohio River, halfway between the metropolitan areas of St. Louis, Missouri, to the west and Nashville,...
and, later, Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
.
In the first election following the ratification of the Kentucky Constitution
Kentucky Constitution
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the document that governs the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It was first adopted in 1792 and has since been rewritten three times and amended many more...
of 1850, Burnett was elected clerk of the circuit court
Circuit court
Circuit court is the name of court systems in several common law jurisdictions.-History:King Henry II instituted the custom of having judges ride around the countryside each year to hear appeals, rather than forcing everyone to bring their appeals to London...
of Trigg County, Kentucky
Trigg County, Kentucky
Trigg County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1820. As of 2000, the population was 12,597. Its county seat is Cadiz. The county is named for Stephen Trigg, a frontier officer in the American Revolutionary War who died in the Battle of Blue Licks...
over James E. Thompson. He resigned in 1853 to run for Congress. Later that year, he was elected as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
to the Thirty-fourth Congress, succeeding Speaker of the House
Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
The Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, or Speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives...
Linn Boyd
Linn Boyd
Linn Boyd was a prominent U.S. politician of the 1840s and 1850s, and served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1851 to 1855. Boyd was elected to the House as a Democrat from Kentucky from 1835 to 1837 and again from 1839 to 1855, serving seven terms in the House...
. He was re-elected to the three succeeding Congresses; during the Thirty-fifth Congress, he chaired the Committee of Enquiry regarding the sale of Fort Snelling and served on the Committee on the District of Columbia.
Outset of the Civil War
Burnett supported fellow Kentuckian John C. BreckinridgeJohn C. Breckinridge
John Cabell Breckinridge was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Kentucky and was the 14th Vice President of the United States , to date the youngest vice president in U.S...
for president in the 1860 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1860
The United States presidential election of 1860 was a quadrennial election, held on November 6, 1860, for the office of President of the United States and the immediate impetus for the outbreak of the American Civil War. The nation had been divided throughout the 1850s on questions surrounding the...
, but Breckinridge lost to Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln had campaigned against the expansion of slavery beyond the states in which it already existed. His victory in the election resulted in seven Southern states declaring their secession
Secession in the United States
Secession in the United States can refer to secession of a state from the United States, secession of part of a state from that state to form a new state, or secession of an area from a city or county....
from the Union. Despite this, most Americans believed the Union could still be saved. Burnett, however, disagreed. In the January 7, 1861 issue of Paducah's Tri-Weekly Herald, he declared that "There is not the slightest hope of any settlement or adjustment of existing troubles." Despite his pessimism, Burnett endorsed the ill-fated Peace Conference of 1861
Peace conference of 1861
The Peace Conference of 1861 was a meeting of more than 100 of the leading politicians of the antebellum United States held in Washington, D.C., in February 1861 that was meant to prevent what ultimately became the Civil War. The success of President Abraham Lincoln and the Republican Party in the...
.
Following the rapid secessions of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, and Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, Congress began preparing the nation for war, including by strengthening the army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
and raising funds for the treasury. Burnett attempted to circumvent these measures by proposing an amendment stipulating that none of these new appropriations could be used to subdue or make war against any of the southern states, but the amendment was defeated.
To avert war, the Kentucky General Assembly
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky.The General Assembly meets annually in the state capitol building in Frankfort, Kentucky, convening on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January...
called for a meeting of border states to convene in Frankfort
Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort is a city in Kentucky that serves as the state capital and the county seat of Franklin County. The population was 27,741 at the 2000 census; by population it is the 5th smallest state capital in the United States...
on May 27. Kentucky's twelve delegates to the convention were to be chosen by special election on May 4. However, after the Confederates fired on Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter is a Third System masonry coastal fortification located in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The fort is best known as the site upon which the shots initiating the American Civil War were fired, at the Battle of Fort Sumter.- Construction :...
on April 12, the secessionist candidates withdrew from the election. Expressing the view of the majority of these delegates, Burnett opined in the Tri-Weekly Herald that the convention would not occur. He was wrong; the convention was held as scheduled, but it failed to accomplish anything of significance.
Special congressional elections of 1861
President Lincoln called for special congressional elections to be held in Kentucky in June 1861. The voters of the First District's Southern Rights party called a meeting to be held May 29, 1861 at the Graves CountyGraves County, Kentucky
Graves County is a county located in the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. It was formed in 1824. As of 2000, the population was 37,028. Its county seat is Mayfield. The county is named for Major Benjamin Franklin Graves, soldier in the War of 1812...
courthouse in Mayfield
Mayfield, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 10,349 people, 4,358 households, and 2,667 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,549.8 people per square mile . There were 4,907 housing units at an average density of 734.8 per square mile...
. The purpose of the meeting was ostensibly to re-nominate Burnett for his congressional seat, but some Unionists believed an ulterior motive was in play. George D. Prentice
George D. Prentice
George Dennison Prentice was the editor of the Louisville Journal, which he built into a major newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky. He attracted readers by satire as well as exaggerated reporting and support of the Know-Nothing Party in the 1850s. His writing was said to contribute to rabid...
, editor of the Unionist Louisville Journal, wrote on May 21, 1861 that "the object of [the Mayfield Convention], though not officially explained, is believed to be the separation of the First District from Kentucky if Kentucky remains in the Union, and its annexation to Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
".
Most of the records of the Mayfield Convention were lost, presumably in a fire that destroyed the courthouse in 1864. The most extensive surviving record comes from the notes of James Beadles, a Unionist observer of the proceedings. After a number of speeches were delivered, a majority committee chaired by Paducah circuit judge James Campbell presented a report containing seven resolutions. The resolutions declared the region's sympathy with the South, although it pledged to abide by Kentucky's present policy of neutrality. It condemned President Lincoln for waging an unjust war and praised Governor
Governor of Kentucky
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once...
Beriah Magoffin
Beriah Magoffin
Beriah Magoffin was the 21st Governor of Kentucky, serving during the early part of the Civil War. Personally, Magoffin adhered to a states' rights position, including the right of a state to secede from the Union, and he sympathized with the Confederate cause...
for refusing Lincoln's call for troops. The report also condemned the federal government for arming Union sympathizers in the state with so-called "Lincoln guns". A minority committee report was given by Ballard County
Ballard County, Kentucky
Ballard County is a county located in west of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was created by the Kentucky State Legislature in 1842, and is named for Captain Bland Ballard, a soldier, statesman, and member of the Kentucky General Assembly. He was one of the few Kentucky volunteers to survive the...
resident and future U.S. Representative Oscar Turner
Oscar Turner (1867)
Oscar Turner was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky, son of Oscar Turner .Born in Woodlands, Kentucky, Turner attended the public schools of Washington, D.C., and Louisville Rugby School....
. This report called Kentucky's neutrality "futile" and "cowardly", promised to fight off any invasion by the North, and recommended calling for aid from Tennessee and the Confederate States in the event of such an invasion. It further warned that if the entire state did not adopt this position, the Purchase region would secede and align itself with Tennessee.
Burnett, along with Lyon County
Lyon County, Kentucky
Lyon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 8,080. Its county seat is Eddyville. Created from Caldwell County, Kentucky in 1854, the county was named for former Congressman Chittenden Lyon....
's Willis B. Machen and Union County
Union County, Kentucky
Union County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1811. As of 2010, the population was 15,007. Its county seat is Morganfield.-Geography:Union County is part of the Western Coal Fields region of Kentucky...
's Benjamin P. Cissell, initially endorsed Campbell's majority report. After some debate, Burnett proposed four resolutions in lieu of both reports. The resolutions condemned President Lincoln for the war against the South and the federal government for the provision of the "Lincoln guns". They also praised Governor Magoffin for rebuffing Lincoln's call for troops and encouraged him to drive away any Union invasion of the state. Burnett's resolutions were passed by large margins in preference to both the majority and minority reports.
Finally, the convention turned to the issue of nominating Burnett. Four others, including Turner, Machen, and Cissell, were also offered as nominees. Burnett received 124 of 155 votes on the first ballot and was chosen unanimously on the second ballot. In his acceptance speech, Burnett declared that he was undecided as to whether he would take the oath of office if elected. This statement alluded to an earlier comment by Turner that "no man who is engaged in the cause of the South could go to Congress and take the oath of office without perjuring
Perjury
Perjury, also known as forswearing, is the willful act of swearing a false oath or affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to a judicial proceeding. That is, the witness falsely promises to tell the truth about matters which affect the outcome of the...
himself". Burnett promised that if he did assume his seat, he was determined to arraign President Lincoln for treason.
In the special elections, Burnett defeated Lawrence Trimble of Paducah. He was the only states' rights
States' rights
States' rights in U.S. politics refers to political powers reserved for the U.S. state governments rather than the federal government. It is often considered a loaded term because of its use in opposition to federally mandated racial desegregation...
candidate elected in the statewide canvass. He won handily in the Jackson Purchase region, which was by far the most pro-Southern area of the state. However, outside the Purchase, he won only his home county of Trigg, and that by a slim margin of twenty votes. (Besides the Purchase counties, the First District also included Caldwell
Caldwell County, Kentucky
As of the census of 2010, there were 12,984 people, with 6,292 households in the county.-Communities:*Bakers*Baldwin Ford*Black Hawk*The Bluff*Cedar Bluff*Claxton*Cobb*Cresswell*Crider*Crowtown*Enon*Farmersville*Flat Rock*Friendship*Fryer...
, Crittenden
Crittenden County, Kentucky
Crittenden County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky.It was formed in 1842. As of 2000, the population was 9,384. Its county seat is Marion. The county is named for John J. Crittenden who was Governor of Kentucky 1848-1850...
, Hopkins
Hopkins County, Kentucky
Hopkins County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1807. As of 2000, the population was 46,519. Its county seat is Madisonville. The county is named for General Samuel Hopkins, an officer in both the Revolutionary War and War of 1812, and later a Kentucky legislator...
, Livingston
Livingston County, Kentucky
Livingston County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 9,804. Its county seat is Smithland. The county is named for Robert R. Livingston...
, Lyon, Trigg, Union, and Webster
Webster County, Kentucky
Webster County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Webster County was formed in 1860 from parts of the counties of Henderson, Hopkins, and Union. As of 2000, the population is 14,120. Its county seat is Dixon. The county was named for American statesman Daniel Webster...
counties.)
Burnett took his seat in the Thirty-seventh Congress; sources make no mention of his making good on his threat not to take the oath of office. Just days after the First Battle of Bull Run
First Battle of Bull Run
First Battle of Bull Run, also known as First Manassas , was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia, near the City of Manassas...
, Burnett's fellow Kentuckian, John J. Crittenden
John J. Crittenden
John Jordan Crittenden was a politician from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He represented the state in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and twice served as United States Attorney General in the administrations of William Henry Harrison and Millard Fillmore...
proposed a resolution blaming the war on the disloyal Southerners and defining the war's aim as preservation of the Union without interfering with the rights or institutions of the states. Burnett asked that the question be divided
Division (vote)
In parliamentary procedure, a division of the assembly is a voting method in which the members of the assembly take a rising vote or go to different parts of the chamber, literally dividing into groups indicating a vote in favour of or in opposition to a motion on the floor...
. His request was granted, but he only found one colleague willing to vote with him against blaming Southerners for the war.
Confederate military service and expulsion
When Congress adjourned August 6, 1861, Burnett returned home to Cadiz and spoke at a number of pro-Southern rallies. On September 4, 1861, Confederate Major GeneralMajor general (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...
Leonidas Polk
Leonidas Polk
Leonidas Polk was a Confederate general in the American Civil War who was once a planter in Maury County, Tennessee, and a second cousin of President James K. Polk...
violated Kentucky's neutrality by ordering Brigadier General
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
Gideon Johnson Pillow
Gideon Johnson Pillow
Gideon Johnson Pillow was an American lawyer, politician, and Confederate general in the American Civil War. He is best remembered for his poor performance at the Battle of Fort Donelson.-Early life:...
to occupy Columbus
Columbus, Kentucky
Columbus is a city in Hickman County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 229 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Columbus is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
. In response, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
captured Paducah on September 6, 1861. With neutrality no longer a tenable option, Burnett presided over a conference of Kentucky's Southern sympathizers that occurred at Russellville between October 29 and October 31, 1861. The self-appointed delegates to this conference called for a sovereignty convention on November 18, 1861 for the purpose of establishing a Confederate government for the state.
In the interim between the two conventions, Burnett traveled to Hopkinsville, where he and Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
W.C.P. Breckinridge raised a Confederate regiment dubbed the 8th Kentucky Infantry
8th Kentucky Infantry
The 8th Kentucky Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.-Service:...
. On November 11, 1861, Burnett himself enlisted in the Confederate States Army
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
at Camp Alcorn; he was chosen as colonel of the 8th Kentucky, but never took command.
William Forst House
The William Forst House, also known as the Clark House and the First-Clark House, is a historic house located in the Russellville Historic District of Russellville, Kentucky. Built in 1820, it made history between November 18 and 20, 1861, as the site where the Confederate government of Kentucky...
in Russellville as scheduled on November 18, 1861. Burnett also presided over this convention. Fearing for the safety of the delegates, he first proposed postponing proceedings until January 8, 1862, but Scott County
Scott County, Kentucky
Scott County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The population was 47,173 in the 2010 Census. Its county seat is Georgetown.Scott County is part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
's George W. Johnson convinced the majority of the delegates to continue. By the third day, the military situation was so tenuous that the entire convention had to be moved to a tower on the campus of Bethel Female College
Bethel College (Kentucky)
Bethel College was a Baptist-affiliated college in Kentucky founded in 1854 and closed in 1964. It was a women's college throughout most of its history, though it became co-educational for its final years....
, a now-defunct institution in Russellville.
The convention passed an ordinance of secession and established a provisional Confederate government for Kentucky. Burnett, William Preston
William Preston (Kentucky)
William Preston was an American lawyer, politician, and ambassador. He also was a brigadier general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
of Fayette County
Fayette County, Kentucky
Fayette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The population was 295,083 in the 2010 Census. Its territory, population and government are coextensive with the city of Lexington, which also serves as county seat....
and William E. Simms
William E. Simms
William Emmett Simms was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky. He also served as a commissioner for the Confederate government of Kentucky and in several posts in the Confederate States government during the American Civil War.-Biography:Simms was born near Cynthiana, Harrison County, Kentucky...
of Bourbon County
Bourbon County, Kentucky
Bourbon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is the remnant of what was previously a much larger Bourbon County, established as part of Virginia in 1785, and comprising what are now thirty-four modern Kentucky counties...
were chosen as commissioners for the provisional government and were dispatched to Richmond, Virginia to negotiate with Confederate President Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
to secure Kentucky's admission to the Confederacy. For reasons unexplained by the delegates, Dr. Luke P. Blackburn
Luke P. Blackburn
Luke Pryor Blackburn was a physician, philanthropist, and politician from the US state of Kentucky. He was elected the 28th governor of Kentucky, serving from 1879 to 1883. Until the election of Ernie Fletcher in 2003, Blackburn was the only physician to serve as governor of Kentucky...
, a native Kentuckian living in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, was invited to accompany the commissioners. Despite the fact that Kentucky's elected government in Frankfort
Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort is a city in Kentucky that serves as the state capital and the county seat of Franklin County. The population was 27,741 at the 2000 census; by population it is the 5th smallest state capital in the United States...
had opposed secession, the commissioners convinced Davis to recommend Kentucky's admission to the Confederacy; the Confederate Congress officially admitted Kentucky on December 10, 1861.
Following his successful mission to Richmond, Burnett joined the 8th Kentucky at Fort Donelson
Fort Donelson
Fort Donelson was a fortress built by the Confederacy during the American Civil War to control the Cumberland River leading to the heart of Tennessee, and the heart of the Confederacy.-History:...
. On February 16, 1862, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
led a combined Federal army-navy attack against the fort. Most of the Confederate garrison was captured, including the 8th Kentucky, but Burnett escaped in general John B. Floyd
John B. Floyd
John Buchanan Floyd was the 31st Governor of Virginia, U.S. Secretary of War, and the Confederate general in the American Civil War who lost the crucial Battle of Fort Donelson.-Early life:...
's retreat following the defeat. This battle ended Burnett's military service.
Burnett's subversive activities did not go unnoticed by his colleagues in Congress. He was absent when the body reconvened December 2, 1861. The following day, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
representative W. McKee Dunn
William M. Dunn
William McKee Dunn was a U.S. Representative from Indiana and the Judge Advocate General of the United States Army.-Early life and career:...
introduced a resolution to expel Burnett from Congress. The resolution passed easily, removing Burnett from the seat he had occupied continuously since 1855.
Confederate political service
Burnett represented Kentucky in the Provisional Confederate Congress from November 18, 1861 to February 17, 1862, and served as a member of that body's Finance Committee. He was then elected as a senator to the FirstFirst Confederate Congress
The First Confederate Congress was the first regular term of the legislature of the Confederate States of America. Members of the First Confederate Congress were chosen in elections mostly held on 6 November 1861.-Sessions:...
and Second Confederate Congress
Second Confederate Congress
The Second Confederate Congress was the second and last regular term of the legislature of the Confederate States of America. Members of the Second Confederate Congress were chosen in elections held at various dates in 1863 and 1864...
es, serving from February 19, 1862 to February 18, 1865. In the Confederate Senate, he served on the Engrossment and Enrollment and Military Affairs Committees.
On March 29, Confederate president Jefferson Davis called on the Confederate Congress to pass a conscription
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
bill. The bill would require a three-year term of service for all able-bodied, white men between the ages of eighteen and thirty-five. At first, the bill was unpopular, but as the military situation grew more dire for the Confederacy, both houses quickly passed it. Still, the measure caused some to question Davis' military decisions. Among these was Burnett, usually one of Davis' staunchest allies. In an April 19, 1862 address to the legislature, Burnett denounced Davis' preference for those who were, like Davis himself, graduates of West Point
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
. The speech drew such a vigorous positive response from the gallery that some of the most zealous had to be removed.
Following the conclusion of the Civil War, Burnett sought an audience with President Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
, an old congressional colleague, but Johnson told him to go home. He was indicted for treason at Louisville, but was released on bond and never prosecuted. He partnered with Judge John R. Grace and resumed the practice of law in Cadiz. He died of cholera in Hopkinsville on September 28, 1866. Initially buried in the Old Cadiz Cemetery, he was moved to the East End Cemetery in Cadiz. His tombstone bears no mention of his Confederate service.