Hugh Lawson White (October 30, 1773 – April 10, 1840) was a prominent
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
during the first third of the 19th century. He succeeded General Jackson and served in the
United States SenateThe 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,...
, representing
TennesseeTennessee is a state located in the Southeastern United States. According to the 2008 census, it has a population of 6,214,888, an increase of nearly 9.5% since 2000. Tennessee is the 14th fastest growing state in the US and is ranked 17th by population. It is ranked 36th by total land area. In...
, from 1825 until his resignation in 1840, and was a Whig candidate for
PresidentThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
in 1836.
He had served in Tennessee in 1792-93 against the
Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
. He began to practice law in
Knoxville, TennesseeFounded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is also the largest city in East Tennessee. As of the 2000 United States Census, Knoxville had a total population of 173,890; the July 2007...
in 1796, and became a judge in 1801.
Hugh Lawson White (October 30, 1773 – April 10, 1840) was a prominent
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
during the first third of the 19th century. He succeeded General Jackson and served in the
United States SenateThe 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,...
, representing
TennesseeTennessee is a state located in the Southeastern United States. According to the 2008 census, it has a population of 6,214,888, an increase of nearly 9.5% since 2000. Tennessee is the 14th fastest growing state in the US and is ranked 17th by population. It is ranked 36th by total land area. In...
, from 1825 until his resignation in 1840, and was a Whig candidate for
PresidentThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
in 1836.
Military service and law
He had served in Tennessee in 1792-93 against the
Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
. He began to practice law in
Knoxville, TennesseeFounded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is also the largest city in East Tennessee. As of the 2000 United States Census, Knoxville had a total population of 173,890; the July 2007...
in 1796, and became a judge in 1801. From 1809-1815, he was an associate justice of the
Tennessee Supreme CourtThe Tennessee Supreme Court is the state supreme court of the state of Tennessee. Janice Holder is the current Chief Justice.Unlike other states, in which the state attorney general is directly elected or appointed by the governor or state legislature, the Tennessee Supreme Court appoints the...
. In 1829-30, Senator White was the author of the bill to remove the Native Americans west of the
MississippiMississippi is a state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The state's name comes from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, and takes its name from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi . The state is heavily forested outside of the...
. His independent nature and his stern rectitude earned for Judge White the appellation "The
CatoMarcus Porcius Cato Uticensis , known as Cato the Younger to distinguish him from his great-grandfather , was a politician and statesman in the late Roman Republic, and a follower of the Stoic philosophy...
of the United States."
Politics
He was at first a strong supporter of President
JacksonAndrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . He was military governor of Florida , commander of the American forces at the Battle of New Orleans , and eponym of the era of Jacksonian democracy...
, but their relationship floundered after the Legislature of Tennessee nominated him for President in 1835. In the election of 1836, he won in Tennessee by more than 10,000 votes. Altogether, he won a total of 26 electoral votes.
Senator White resigned on January 13, 1840 after the General Assembly of Tennessee instructed him to vote for the Sub Treasury Bill, or Independent Treasury Bill. He had been a banker and the president of the Bank of Tennessee from 1812 to 1827.
Alexander O. AndersonAlexander Outlaw Anderson was an Tennessee lawyer who served in the United States Senate.-Biography:...
replaced him in the Senate on February 26, 1840. On April 20, 1840, in the Senate, Senator Anderson announced the death of Hugh L. White. He is interred at First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Knoxville.
White County, ArkansasWhite County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of 2000, the population was 67,165. The county seat is Searcy. White County is Arkansas's 31st county, formed on October 23, 1835, from portions of Independence, Jackson, and Pulaski counties and named for Hugh Lawson White, a...
was named in his honor.
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