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89-609: During the War of 1812, the Illinois Territory was the scene of fighting between Native Americans and United States soldiers and settlers. There were few U.S. Army soldiers this far west on the frontier. Ninian Edwards , the territorial governor, directed state militia operations. The two components are the: When National Guard troops are called to federal service, the President serves as Commander-In-Chief . The federal mission assigned to

178-467: A state of emergency by the Governor of the state in which they serve. Unlike Army Reserve members, National Guard members cannot be mobilized individually (except through voluntary transfers and Temporary Duty Assignments), but only as part of their respective units . However, there has been a significant number of individual activations to support military operations from 2001; the legality of this policy

267-725: A German immigrant colony in Florida on lands that he bought but never inspected personally; this business venture failed. Wirt practiced law until his death. He fell sick on February 8, 1834, in Washington, D.C., where he attended the proceedings of the Supreme Court. His biographer John P. Kennedy wrote that the early diagnosis of a cold was followed by identifying the symptoms of erysipelas or St. Anthony's fire. He died on February 18, 1834. Wirt's last rites were attended by President Jackson and members of his cabinet; John Quincy Adams read

356-539: A bill that would both abolish Illinois' "indentured servant" system of de facto slavery, and prohibit Illinois' future Constitution from reinstating it. Governor Edwards issued his only veto to send the bill back to the legislature, and it was never revised. He made his objections on constitutional grounds, but he also had a conflict of interest as the owner of several enslaved people himself. During Edwards' terms as territorial governor, Illinois' population more than tripled, from 12,282 in 1810 to 40,258 in 1818 (a census

445-919: A eulogy address in the House of Representatives. William Wirt was buried in Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C. The house he occupied in Richmond from 1816 to 1818, known as the Hancock-Wirt-Caskie House , was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. Wirt's earliest work was Letters of the British Spy , which he first contributed to the Richmond Argus in 1803, and which won immediate popularity. The letters are chiefly studies of eloquence and eloquent men, are written in

534-520: A ferry operator. He opened fire on the group when they approached too closely. Governor Edwards acted quickly to attempt to maintain peace, ordering the militia to “erect a chain of block houses in advance of the settlements at about twenty miles from each other commencing on the bank of the Illinois River , and a sufficient force to be distributed among them, with orders to scout from one to another every day.” The most prominent of these new blockhouses

623-504: A field to which he devoted considerable time in his later years. In 1794, at the age of 19, Edwards moved to Nelson County, Kentucky to manage some family land. He showed a great aptitude for business and leadership and was soon elected to a seat in the Kentucky House of Representatives , before he was even eligible to vote. In 1802 he was awarded the rank of major in the militia . In 1803 he moved to Russellville, Kentucky , and won

712-490: A former Freemason , the Anti-Masonic Party nominated him for president in 1832. Wirt did not actively campaign for office and refused to publicly speak against Masonry. Nonetheless, the ticket of Wirt and Amos Ellmaker carried the state of Vermont , becoming the first third party presidential ticket to win a state. After the election, Wirt continued to practice law until his death in 1834. Wirt County, West Virginia ,

801-551: A former Freemason . He had taken the first two degrees of Freemasonry in Jerusalem Lodge #54 Richmond, Virginia becoming a fellow craft , or second degree, mason. Wirt wrote in his acceptance letter to the nominating convention that he found Freemasonry unobjectionable and that in his experience many Masons were "intelligent men of high and honourable character" who would never choose Freemasonry above "their duties to their God and country". Historian William Vaughn wrote, "Wirt

890-550: A job he wanted as the first United States Minister to Mexico . While en route to his new position, Edwards was called back to Washington to testify before a special House committee concerning the "A.B. Plot". Unable to substantiate his claims, Edwards resigned his diplomatic post, to be replaced by Joel Roberts Poinsett . Back in Illinois, Edwards settled in Belleville , a town whose site he had once owned before selling off its lots at

979-530: A large number of French settlers from Peoria as well as Potawatomi. In 1813, Illinois and Missouri militia joined a force of United States infantry under Benjamin Howard to drive all Native American villagers away from Peoria and establish Fort Clark . Edwards' actions alienated those Native Americans friendly to the U.S. in the region. Ninian Edwards, having lost the confidence of the Madison administration, waited out

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1068-542: A position he held for over 11 years, through the administration of John Quincy Adams, until 1829. William Wirt has the record for the longest tenure in history of any U.S. attorney general. In 1824, Attorney General Wirt argued for the United States against Daniel Webster in Gibbons v. Ogden that the federal patent laws preempted New York State's patent grant to steamboat inventor Robert Fulton 's successor, Aaron Ogden, of

1157-530: A profit. When he returned to Illinois, Edwards appeared to be a discredited politician. He no longer had a loyal coalition in the General Assembly to re-elect him to the U.S. Senate. His actions in the "A.B. Plot" had made him lose favor with President Adams; therefore he could not expect another federal appointment. In addition, supporters of Andrew Jackson were becoming a force in Illinois politics. Illinois frontier voters so admired Jackson that soon, for

1246-445: A provision of the 1787 Ordinance limiting voting rights to freeholders of 50 acres (20 ha) of land. Due to long-running disputes over fraudulently sold lands, very few Illinois frontiersmen could qualify. At Edwards' urging, Congress granted the Illinois Territory universal white male suffrage , making it the most democratic U.S. territory at the time. In April, Edwards held a referendum on moving to second-grade government, allowing

1335-482: A series of didactic and ethical essays, entitled The Old Bachelor , which, collected, passed through several editions (2 vols., 1812). These papers treat of female education, Virginian manners, the fine arts, and especially oratory. An essay from this collection, "Eloquence of the Pulpit", a vigorous and passionate protest against coldness in this genre, has been singled out for praise. In October 1826, Wirt delivered before

1424-792: A successful law practice in Springfield, Illinois and served as a judge in Illinois' Thirteenth Circuit. Ninian Edwards' daughter, Julia Edwards Cook, married Congressman Daniel Pope Cook . Their son, John Pope Cook , was a mayor of Springfield and a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War . Edwards County, Illinois was named for him, as is the St. Louis, Missouri Metro-East area city of Edwardsville, Illinois . Both were named for him during his time as territorial governor. The territorial legislature named Edwards County, while Edwardsville

1513-463: A succession of public offices: circuit court judge in 1803, presidential elector in 1804 (voting for Thomas Jefferson ), and judge and finally chief justice of the Kentucky Court of Appeals , which at the time was Kentucky's highest court. He joined the high court in 1806 and won the leadership position in 1808. A well-educated landowning aristocrat, Edwards deliberately cultivated the image of

1602-525: A vivid and luxuriant style, and may be regarded, in spite of the exceptional excellence of "The Blind Preacher", as rather a prophecy of literary skill than its fulfilment. They were soon afterward issued in book form (Richmond, 1803; 10th ed., with a biographical sketch of the author by Peter H. Cruse, New York, 1832). In 1808 Wirt wrote for the Richmond Enquirer essays entitled The Rainbow , and in 1810, with Dabney Carr , George Tucker , and others,

1691-567: Is an unresolved issue within the National Guard. Ninian Edwards Ninian Edwards (March 17, 1775 – July 20, 1833) was an American political figure who was prominent in Illinois . He served as the first and only governor of the Illinois Territory from 1809 to until the territory earned statehood in 1818. He was then one of the first two United States senators from

1780-662: Is named in Wirt's honor. William Wirt was born in Bladensburg, Maryland , to a German mother, Henrietta, and a Swiss German father, Jacob Wirt. Both of his parents died before he was eight years old and Jasper Wirt, his uncle, became his guardian. Between his seventh and his eleventh year Wirt was sent to several classical schools and finally to one kept by the Reverend James Hunt in Montgomery County , where he received over

1869-653: Is now Lower Alton, five Menominee Natives approached two locals, Price and Ellis. Price, believing the Natives to be friendly allowed them into their camp. Unfortunately, Price was killed; Ellis was able to escape on horse to the Wood River settlement. These murders brought panic to frontier families and fueled unfounded rumors of more murder and mayhem in the territory. This fear did result in the death of at least one Native chief. A group of five Potawatomi Natives were traveling down river at Alton when they were viewed by Michael Squires,

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1958-641: The Adams - Clay faction that would develop into the National Republicans after Edwards left office. Edwards voted for the Missouri Compromise in 1820, a bill that Thomas sponsored. He voted against a law reducing prices for federal land, which made both Edwards and Representative Daniel Pope Cook targets of criticism at home. On May 6, 1821, Cook married Edwards' daughter Julia. Ninian Edwards caused trouble for himself when he wrote several articles in

2047-577: The Battle of Fort Dearborn in 1812 convinced Edwards that Potawatomi and Kickapoo in the territory were preparing to launch a major attack on the southern settlements. This assumption followed the Natives' stalled offensive of August and September 1812. The suspected target was Peoria, Illinois , where Native American tribes – Kickapoo , Potawatomi , and Piankashaw – had assembled in large numbers, and from where they recently undertook failed raids on American settlements. Edwards lacked assistance from outside

2136-564: The Delphian Club . After leaving his position as attorney general, Wirt settled in Baltimore , Maryland . He became a candidate for president in 1832, nominated by the Anti-Masonic Party. This party held the first ever national nominating convention in U.S. history on September 11, 1830, in Philadelphia establishing the tradition. The date was chosen to commemorate the fourth anniversary of

2225-665: The Jacksonian Democrats . When his expectations did not materialize, he wrote in frustration about his presidential aspirations: "What the use ... it neither breaks my leg nor picks my pocket." In the election, Wirt carried Vermont with seven electoral votes, becoming the first candidate of an organized third party to carry a state, and he remains the only presidential candidate so successful who came from Maryland. When The Providence American newspaper suggested that Wirt could run again in 1836, he quickly declined. In 1833, Wirt became involved with his son-in-law in establishing

2314-482: The Kentucky Court of Appeals in 1808, at the time Kentucky's highest court. In 1809, U.S. President James Madison appointed him to govern the newly created Illinois Territory. He held that post for three terms, overseeing the territory's transition first to democratic "second grade" government, and then to statehood in 1818. On its second day in session, the Illinois General Assembly elected Edwards to

2403-516: The Morgan Affair . However, no candidate was agreed upon. The actual nomination occurred a year later during the second convention in Baltimore. On September 28, 1831, Wirt became a presidential candidate after the fifth ballot. Amos Ellmaker became his running mate . Wirt is the only person from Maryland to ever become a presidential candidate who won any electoral votes . Wirt was, in fact,

2492-521: The Washington Republican under the pseudonym "A.B." that attacked U.S. Treasury Secretary William H. Crawford . Edwards alleged that Crawford had known of the impending failure of Illinois' Bank of Edwardsville in 1821, but had not withdrawn federal money from it. Edwards found that none of Crawford's rivals was willing to support his charges, and he was unable to produce corroborating evidence. He resigned his Senate seat on March 4, 1824, to take

2581-547: The 1970s someone had broken into the Wirt Tomb at Washington, D.C.'s Congressional Cemetery and had stolen Wirt's skull. After the skull was recovered from the house of a historical memorabilia collector, Robert L. White , it spent time in D.C. Council member Jim Graham 's office while he tried to get it returned to its rightful crypt. Finally in 2005 investigators from the Smithsonian Institution were able to determine

2670-538: The Illinois Territory. Before 1812, while Illinois had a first-grade territorial status, Edwards had vast powers to appoint county and local officials; however, he made it his practice to consider local opinion as much as he could when making appointments, often giving weight to petitions signed by local residents. He attempted to do the same for militia officers for a time, letting the men of a unit elect their leaders, but he soon abandoned this policy as impractical. In 1812, Edwards successfully persuaded Congress to modify

2759-666: The Kickapoo suggested the number was closer to eighty. All told, the short campaign burned several villages and inflicted dozens of casualties before returning to Edwardsville on October 31, 1812. The attack angered both the Peoria villagers and the U.S. government because it had been carried out against Native Americans loyal to Black Partridge and Gomo , two leaders who had not joined Tecumseh's War and were considered friendly to U.S. interests. A second attack under Captain Thomas Craig killed

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2848-715: The National Guard is: "To provide properly trained and equipped units for prompt mobilization for war, National emergency or as otherwise needed." The Governor may call individuals or units of the Illinois National Guard into state service during emergencies or to assist in special situations which lend themselves to use of the National Guard. The state mission assigned to the National Guard is: "To provide trained and disciplined forces for domestic emergencies or as otherwise provided by state law." National Guard units can be mobilized at any time by presidential order to supplement regular armed forces, and upon declaration of

2937-656: The Saline Fork of the Sangamon River. The regiment discovered native artwork, some of which depicted the scalping of American settlers. The regiment burned both abandoned villages. After burning the two Kickapoo villages on the Sangamon River along the way, the militia advanced on Peoria itself. The village the army was preparing to attack was recently developed at the head of Peoria Lake and inhabited by Piankashaw and Kickapoo Natives likely led by Chief Pemwatome. At dawn,

3026-559: The State of Illinois from 1818 to 1824, and the third Governor of Illinois from 1826 to 1830. In a time and place where personal coalitions were more influential than parties, Edwards led one of the two main factions in frontier Illinois politics. Born in Maryland , Edwards began his political career in Kentucky , where he served as a legislator and judge. He rose to the position of Chief Justice of

3115-490: The U.S. Constitution, and in the United States House of Representatives , filling a vacant seat for two months. Ninian was educated by private tutors, one of whom was the future U.S. Attorney General William Wirt . He attended Dickinson College from 1790 to 1792 but did not graduate, leaving college to study law. His son Ninian Wirt Edwards wrote later that Edwards spent some of his time at Dickinson reading medicine,

3204-512: The U.S. House of Representatives in 1832 and lost. Edwards devoted himself to charitable medical work in Belleville, giving free care to local residents. A cholera epidemic came through the area in 1833, carried by Winfield Scott 's troops during the Black Hawk War . Edwards stayed in the town to care for his patients and caught the disease, dying on July 20. He was interred in Belleville, but

3293-535: The U.S. Senate, where conflict with rivals damaged him politically. Edwards won an unlikely 1826 election to become Governor of Illinois. Conflict with the legislature over state bank regulations marked Edwards' administration, as did the pursuit of Indian removal . As governor or territorial governor he twice sent Illinois militia against Native Americans, in the War of 1812 and the Winnebago War , and signed treaties for

3382-660: The Virginia House of Delegates, then chancellor of the Eastern District of Virginia, resigning after six months. In 1802, he married Elizabeth Washington Gamble , the daughter of Colonel Robert Gamble of Richmond. In the winter of 1803/04, Wirt moved to Norfolk , but in 1806, wishing for a wider field of practice, returned to Richmond. In 1807, President Thomas Jefferson asked him to be the prosecutor in Aaron Burr 's trial for treason. His principal speech, four hours in length,

3471-443: The acquaintance of many persons of eminence, including Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe. For a time, Wirt took advantage of the hospitality of the country gentlemen and the convivial habits of the members of the bar so that he was regarded by other attorneys as a bon vivant, a fascinating, cheerful, and lively companion, rather than as an ambitious lawyer. In 1799 his wife died, and he moved to Richmond , where he became clerk of

3560-638: The acts of Congress". During the 1820s, Wirt was a member of the Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences , which included as members former presidents Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams and many prominent men of the day, including well-known representatives of the military, government service, medical and other professions. Wirt was also an honorary member of the American Whig–Cliosophic Society and associated with

3649-490: The army advanced. Edwards inflicted a devastating defeat to the Native American village. Edwards’ army seized eighty horses, some recently stolen from Saint Clair County, silver ornaments, 200 brass kettles, guns, and six scalps believed to belong to the women and children of the settler O’Neal family from Missouri. Edwards estimated that approximately thirty Native peoples were killed in the raid, although later estimates from

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3738-594: The cession of Native American land. Edwards returned to private life when his term ended in 1830 and died of cholera two years later. Ninian Edwards was born in 1775 to the prominent Edwards family in Montgomery County, Maryland . His mother, Margaret Beall Edwards, was from another prominent local family. His father Benjamin Edwards served in the Maryland House of Delegates , in Maryland's state ratifying convention for

3827-399: The citizens of Washington a discourse on the lives and characters of the ex-presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson , who had died on 4 July of the same year (Washington, 1826). The London Quarterly Review , in a paper on American oratory several years afterward, pronounced this discourse "the best which this remarkable coincidence has called forth". In 1830 Wirt delivered an address to

3916-577: The course of four years the chief part of his education. For two years he boarded with Hunt, in whose library he spent much of his time, reading with a keen and indiscriminate appetite. In his 15th year the school was disbanded, and his inheritance nearly exhausted. Ninian Edwards (later governor of Illinois) had been Wirt's schoolmate, and Edwards's father, Benjamin Edwards (later a member of Congress from Maryland), thought Wirt had more than ordinary natural ability and invited him to reside with his family as tutor to Ninian and two nephews, offering him also

4005-432: The distribution of patronage . In the early territorial years, two rival factions grew up around Edwards and Judge Jesse B. Thomas . These two factions formed Illinois' political landscape during its time as a territory and for its first several years of statehood. Throughout Edwards' three terms as governor, he showed a willingness to surrender his own considerable powers in order to expand participatory government in

4094-564: The exclusive right to operate a steamboat between New York and New Jersey in the Hudson River. Wirt argued "that a power in the States to grant exclusive patents, is utterly inconsistent with the power given to the national government to grant such exclusive patents: and hence, that the power given to Congress is one which is exclusive from its nature." Although the Gibbons Court declined to decide

4183-488: The first time, they would give their support to a national party, the Democrats . Ninian Edwards never criticized Jackson, but as an Adams-Clay Republican Senator he was not part of Jackson's growing coalition. Jacksonians deeply resented Edwards' ally Cook, who had voted against Jackson when the presidential election of 1824 was decided in the House of Representatives. However, when he ran for governor in 1826, Edwards had

4272-466: The good fortune to enter a three-way race that split the Jacksonians between state Senator Thomas Sloo and Lieutenant Governor Adolphus Hubbard . As a campaign issue, Edwards focused on Illinois' dire financial situation, blaming Sloo and Hubbard and other legislators for it. Edwards won 49.5 percent of the vote to Sloo's 46 percent, with the rest going to Hubbard. Edwards' gubernatorial term

4361-463: The jurisdiction of the legislature. In 1815 the issue was resolved by Congress, which passed a law supporting Edwards and the legislature. In December 1817, Edwards, responding to a movement for statehood led by his ally Daniel Pope Cook , recommended to the legislature that Illinois apply for admission to the Union. He also recommended that a census first be taken of the territory, a standard practice, but

4450-542: The lead-mining region around Galena . Edwards dispatched the militia and ordered 600 more men to be recruited in Sangamon County . The show of force convinced the Ho-Chunk to surrender. After the war, Edwards urged the federal government to remove the remaining Native Americans from northern Illinois, claiming that their presence violated "the rights of a sovereign and independent state", and hinting that he might dispatch

4539-522: The legislature rejected this. Legislators, particularly those opposed to slavery, feared that any delay would allow Missouri to apply for statehood before Illinois, and that since Missouri was a slave state, this would cause so much turmoil in Congress that it would delay Illinois' admission even longer. In order to emphasize to Congress that Illinois would be a free state, the legislature passed in January 1818

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4628-517: The literary societies of Rutgers College , which, after its publication by the students (New Brunswick, 1830), was republished in England, and translated into French and German. His other publications are: Wirt had the distinction of being regarded for many years as the chief man of letters in the South. In the early 2000s, after a series of mysterious phone calls to the cemetery, it was discovered that in

4717-583: The militia again to force them out. The federal government applied diplomatic pressure, and on July 29, 1829, the Potawatomi, Ottawa, and Ojibwe ceded 3,000 square miles (7,800 km ) of northern land to the State of Illinois; the Winnebago made a cession in August. Under the 1818 constitution, governors were limited to a single term. When Edwards' ended on December 6, 1830, he returned to private life. He ran for

4806-490: The natural leader. Thomas Ford writes that he continued to dress like an 18th-century gentleman long after such fashions had gone out of style, and that his public speaking was marked by showy eloquence. Edwards consciously positioned himself in the select class of men who dominated Kentucky and, later, Illinois politics. In 1803 in Russellville, Edwards married Elvira Lane, a relative from Maryland. The Illinois Territory

4895-594: The new law. On March 3, 1832, the decision in Worcester v. Georgia , authored by Chief Justice John Marshall , held that the Cherokee Nation was "a distinct community, occupying its own territory, with boundaries accurately described, in which the laws of Georgia can have no force, and which the citizens of Georgia have no right to enter but with the assent of the Cherokees themselves or in conformity with treaties and with

4984-459: The people of Illinois to elect a legislature and a non-voting delegate to Congress. The referendum passed, and elections were held in October that sent Shadrach Bond to Washington as Illinois' first congressional delegate. Edwards had not been governor long when Illinois became the scene of fighting during the War of 1812 . Relations between Illinois settlers and Native Americans worsened throughout

5073-415: The plaza's name where the statue is located from Ninian Edwards Plaza to City Plaza. In the summer of 2021, the City removed the pedestal that Ninian Edwards statue was on. William Wirt (Attorney General) William Wirt (November 8, 1772 – February 18, 1834) was an American author and statesman who is credited with turning the position of United States Attorney General into one of influence. He

5162-420: The position for 21 days but then resigned to take Edwards' job as Kentucky Chief Justice, while friends in Washington helped secure Edwards' appointment as territorial governor. In the meantime, Territorial Secretary Nathaniel Pope , a cousin of Edwards, had to assume the powers of acting governor, creating Illinois' first counties and appointing officials to form the new government. Only 34 years old at

5251-458: The possibility that it yet might rule in favor of the Cherokee. Wirt therefore waited for a test case to again resolve the constitutionality of the laws of Georgia. On March 1, 1831, Georgia passed a law aimed at evicting missionaries, who were perceived as encouraging the Cherokee resistance to removal from Cherokee lands. The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions , an interdenominational missionary organization, hired Wirt to challenge

5340-414: The question, 140 years later the Supreme Court confirmed Wirt's view in Sears, Roebuck & Co. v. Stiffel Co. In June 1830, a delegation of Cherokee led by Chief John Ross selected Wirt on the urging of Senators Webster and Frelinghuysen to defend Cherokee rights before the U.S. Supreme Court . Wirt argued, in Cherokee Nation v. Georgia , that the Cherokee Nation was "a foreign nation in

5429-418: The rest of his time as governor. Edwards, along with much of the legislature, criticized the territory's judges for their inactivity. Among their complaints were that the judges did not hold court often enough and spent too much time absent from the territory. The legislature passed a bill in 1814 to reform the territory's judicial system. The judges refused to acknowledge the act, claiming that they were outside

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5518-429: The scalp from Elijah and removed his heart. The raiding party was looking for money after a failed raid on the nearby tribe of Osage . The men captured Rebecca, robbed the home and set out north for tribal controlled lands. A militia was sent to intercede and rescued Rebecca shortly south of Springfield. One more violent interaction occurred prior to the end of the month to stoke the flames of war. On June 20, 1811, in what

5607-417: The sense of our constitution and law" and was therefore not subject to Georgia's jurisdiction. Wirt asked the Supreme Court to void all Georgia laws extended over Cherokee territory on the grounds that they violated the U.S. Constitution , United States–Cherokee treaties, and United States intercourse laws. Although the Court determined that it did not have original jurisdiction in this case, the Court held open

5696-506: The state deeply in debt. In his inaugural address Edwards undiplomatically attacked bank officials and politicians alike, accusing them of fraud and perjury. From that point, Edwards had a poor relationship with the General Assembly. During his term the Assembly did eventually pass a bank regulation bill, but it also passed a measure to relieve debtors despite Edwards' objections that the state could not afford it. In 1827 Illinois established its first penitentiary , at Alton . That same year,

5785-415: The state received a federal land grant to build the Illinois and Michigan Canal , though work did not begin for several years. Also in 1827, Edwards ordered the Illinois militia to join another war against Native Americans in northern Illinois. The Winnebago War , fought between white settlers and members of the Ho-Chunk tribe, broke out in Wisconsin (then part of the Michigan Territory ) but spread to

5874-447: The temporary support of Thomas' allies in the General Assembly who had voted for him in 1818. He narrowly defeated Thomas partisan Michael Jones by a vote of 23–19. This may have been due to the influence of the powerful Secretary of State Elias Kane , a Thomas ally. Like most members of Congress during the Era of Good Feelings , Senator Edwards sat as a member of the Democratic-Republican Party . As his second term drew on, he joined

5963-571: The territory and instead relied on his own resources. Edwards estimated there were no more than 2,000 adult white males between the Mississippi and Wabash Rivers , while there were more than 1,000 Native tribesmen able to assemble at Peoria in a matter of days. In order to establish a militia, Edwards pledged his own resources to assure payment to militia volunteers. In his capacity as commander in chief, Edwards gathered 350 mounted rangers and volunteers near Edwardsville and personally led an expedition north to Peoria . His senior staff included many of

6052-478: The territory during 1810 and 1811. By June 1811, Governor Edwards ordered the construction of a series of blockhouses and called out three companies of militia. This action was the result of tensions that were created from a brutal murder that occurred on June 2, 1811, at a settlement cabin two miles northeast of Pocahontas, Illinois . Three Potawatomi Natives stormed the home and found twenty-year-old Elijah Cox and his younger sister, Rebecca. The assailants sliced

6141-552: The territory's most prominent citizens. These included Nathaniel W. Pope, territorial secretary, Benjamin Stephenson , Thomas Carlin , future Illinois Governor, and William, Elias, and Nelson Rector. The company was divided into two smaller regiments, one commanded by Stephenson acting as Colonel, the other by a Rector brother. Edwards and his army departed Fort Russell from Edwardsville on October 18, 1812. After crossing into Logan County, Edwards’ army encountered two deserted Kickapoo villages near present-day Salt Creek, formerly known as

6230-474: The territory. An 1803 "Law Concerning Servants" had been promulgated for the Indiana Territory by then-Governor William Henry Harrison that maintained the status of people brought into the territory "under contract to serve another in any trade or occupation." The law, which remained in force in the Illinois territory, permitted slavery to persist for decades under the guise of indentured servitude . Most of Illinois' early governors were slaveowners, and Edwards

6319-432: The time of his appointment, Ninian Edwards is the youngest man ever to govern Illinois as either a state or a territory. Edwards settled in the American Bottom on land he received as a grant upon his appointment as governor. He named his new farm Elvirade, after his wife. Along with his family, Edwards brought a number of slaves, whom he did not free even though the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 had made slavery illegal in

6408-656: The use of his library for his own studies. Wirt accepted the offer and stayed twenty months, teaching, pursuing his own classical and historical studies, writing, and preparing for the bar. Wirt was admitted to the Virginia bar in 1792, and he began practice at Culpeper Courthouse. Wirt had the advantages of a vigorous constitution and a good carriage, but the drawbacks of meager legal equipment, constitutional shyness, and brusque and indistinct speech. In 1795, he married Mildred, daughter of Dr. George Gilmer, and moved to Pen Park, where Gilmer lived, near Charlottesville . There he made

6497-607: The war in Kentucky. However, he was reappointed to a second and then a third term as territorial governor in 1812 and 1815, and he was also named one of the three U.S. negotiators of the Treaties of Portage des Sioux in 1815. During his nine years as territorial governor, Edwards made a good deal of money through several profitable ventures, including farming, land speculation , and investment in sawmills, grist mills, and stores. Edwards' political rivalry with Jesse B. Thomas continued for

6586-486: Was another period of rapid growth for Illinois. In the decade from 1820 to 1830, the population again nearly tripled from 55,211 to 157,445. During this era, Illinois was the fastest-growing territory in the world. Edwards' administration was hampered by his conflict with the legislature, primarily over the struggling Bank of Illinois . The bank had been established in 1821, and from the beginning it had been underfunded, its notes had badly depreciated, and it had helped put

6675-509: Was appointed as a United States Attorney in 1816. The following year, President James Monroe appointed him to the position of United States Attorney General. Wirt remained in that office for the next twelve years, serving under Monroe and John Quincy Adams . He continued his law career after leaving office, representing the Cherokee in Cherokee Nation v. Georgia . Though Wirt was himself

6764-466: Was characterized by eloquent appeal, polished wit, and logical reasoning. It greatly extended his fame. The passage in which he depicted in glowing colors the home of Harman Blennerhassett and "the wife of his bosom, whom he lately permitted not the winds of summer 'to visit too roughly'", as "shivering at midnight on the wintry banks of the Ohio, and mingling her tears with the torrents that froze as they fell",

6853-594: Was constructed during the summer of 1812 by Colonel William Russell and named Camp Edwards in honor of the Governor, although it would commonly be known as Fort Russell. Its importance was due to its strategic location between the Mississippi River and Kaskaskia River . Governor Edwards spent considerable time at the fort, and while he was the commander-in-chief of the militia, he had very little military expertise or Native American knowledge. The declaration of war and

6942-408: Was created in 1809. It included all of what today are the states of Wisconsin and Illinois , as well as parts of Minnesota and Michigan . Its European-American and African-American populations were almost entirely concentrated in the south, in the region later known as Egypt . President James Madison first appointed Kentucky politician John Boyle as its governor. Boyle collected his salary for

7031-633: Was finally conducted later that year). The population did not meet the 60,000 threshold the Northwest Ordinance required for a new state, but both Illinoisans and Congress expected continued growth. Illinois quickly proceeded along the steps to statehood. Its constitution was finished in August 1818; elections were held in September; and in October, the first General Assembly met in Kaskaskia. On October 6, Ninian Edwards stepped down, and Shadrach Bond

7120-458: Was for many years a favorite piece for academic declamation. Wirt was nicknamed the "Whip Syllabub Genius" by his enemies for the frothy, over-the-top nature of his oratory. In 1808, Wirt was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. In 1816, he was appointed U.S. Attorney for the District of Virginia , and in 1817 President James Monroe named him the ninth Attorney General of the United States,

7209-502: Was inaugurated as Illinois' first governor. The following day the new state legislature voted for Illinois' two members of the U.S. Senate. Edwards was quickly chosen on the first ballot; his rival Thomas was only elected after the fourth. Edwards and Thomas then drew straws to determine their respective terms: Thomas was placed in Class II of the Senate and could serve until 1823, while Edwards

7298-442: Was later moved to Springfield 's Oak Ridge Cemetery . His brother was Cyrus Edwards who was a lawyer and Illinois state legislator. Three of Edwards' sons and one son-in-law followed him into politics. Ninian Wirt Edwards (1809–1889), named for his father and his father's childhood tutor William Wirt, served as Illinois Attorney General , in the General Assembly, and as Illinois' first Superintendent of Public Instruction. He

7387-612: Was married to Elizabeth Porter Todd, a sister of Mary Todd Lincoln . Their daughter Julia Cook Edwards married Edward Lewis Baker, editor of the Illinois State Journal and son of Congressman David Jewett Baker . Another son, Albert Gallatin Edwards (1812–1892), was an assistant secretary of the U.S. Treasury under President Abraham Lincoln . In 1887 he founded the brokerage firm A. G. Edwards in Saint Louis, Missouri. A third son, Benjamin S. Edwards (1818–1886), established

7476-606: Was named by its founder, Thomas Kirkpatrick. The Edwards Trace , pioneer Central Illinois trail, was named for Ninian Edwards and his War of 1812 campaign. Since the summer of 2020, Edwardsville community members have been calling for the removal of Ninian Edwards' statue and the renaming of the Ninian Edwards Plaza in Edwardsville, Illinois, due to Edwards' racist legacy. That same year the City Council unanimously changed

7565-474: Was no exception. In 1812, Edwards offered for sale, "several likely young negro men and women." Later, he made extra income by renting some of his "indentured servants" out for labor in Missouri. In 1814, he "sold my mulatto boy slave named Wallace now in possession of Harry of Ste. Genevieve Missouri Territory to Theodore Hunt. In 1815, he was seeking to sell his "Mulatto Boy" for $ 400. The new territorial governor

7654-504: Was placed in Class III and had to face reelection in February 1819. Edwards and Thomas still had to wait for Congress to formally ratify Illinois' constitution and admission to the Union, which it did on November 25. On December 3 the two senators were finally seated, leaving Edwards with a mere three months in his first term. Edwards' re-election was more difficult. In four months he had lost

7743-748: Was possibly the most reluctant and most unwilling presidential candidate ever nominated by an American party.' After being selected Wirt started to regret his nomination and distanced himself from actual campaigning. He admitted later, "In the canvass I took no part, not even by writing private letters, which, on the contrary, I refused to answer whenever such answers could be interpreted into canvassing for office." In private conversations Wirt criticized Masonry for alleged intent to create international order ruled from Europe, but refused all Antimasonic attempts to make his sentiments public. He hoped for enthusiastic national support to an electoral alliance between Anti-Masons and National Republicans that would overpower

7832-582: Was sworn in on June 11, 1809. At first Edwards tried to avoid partisanship but soon found that faction was an inevitable result of his power to appoint officials and distribute government jobs. Although the First Party System continued to define national politics, the Federalist and Republican Parties never took hold in frontier Illinois. Rather, factional loyalties were created by personality, personal bonds such as kinship and militia service, and especially

7921-562: Was the longest-serving attorney general in U.S. history. He was also the Anti-Masonic nominee for president in the 1832 election . Wirt grew up in Maryland but pursued a legal career in Virginia , passing the Virginia bar in 1792. After holding various positions, he served as the prosecutor in Aaron Burr 's trial for treason. He won election to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1808 and

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