Pickett's History of Alabama - Chapter 47 - The First Legislature of the
State of Alabama -- Governor Bibb

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                 Albert James Pickett: HISTORY OF ALABAMA.
                  (Kindly contributed by William C. Bell)
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                               CHAPTER XLVII.
                                      
              THE FIRST LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALABAMA --
                               GOVERNOR BIBB.
                                      
   Summer 1819: An election was held throughout the new State of Alabama
   for a governor and members of the legislature, in anticipation of the
   admission by Congress of the State as of a member of the American
   Union. William W. Bibb received eight thousand three hundred and
   forty-two votes for governor, and his opponent, Marmaduke Williams,
   received seven thousand one hundred and forty.
   
   The General Assembly of Alabama convened at Huntsville on the fourth
   Monday in October. The House of Representatives was composed of
   forty-five members, and James Dellet, of Monroe, was elected Speaker.
   The Senate had twenty-one members, and Thomas Bibb was elected
   President of that body.
   
   Nov. 9: William W. Bibb was inaugurated as the first governor of the
   State before both houses of the legislature, in the presence of a
   large assemblage of citizens, to whom he made a handsome and
   appropriate address. He had previously presented an excellent message,
   in which he congratulated the people upon the abundant crops which it
   had pleased the Almighty to afford them, the health which they had
   universally enjoyed, and the fortunate termination of the convention,
   which had resulted in the establishment of an excellent constitution.
   He brought to the attention of the legislature the subject of the
   liberal donations by Congress in reserving for a seminary of learning
   seventy-two sections of land -- the sixteenth section in every
   township for the use of schools -- five per cent. of the net proceeds
   of the sales of the public lands (sold after the first of September,
   1819) for purposes of internal improvements--and sixteen hundred and
   twenty acres of land, at the confluence of the Cahawba and Alabama
   rivers, for a seat of government. He reported that he had laid off the
   town of Cahawba, and that one hundred and eighty-two lots had been
   sold, for one hundred and twenty-three thousand eight hundred and
   fifty-six dollars -- one-fourth of which, received in cash, had been
   deposited in the Planters' and Merchants' Bank of Huntsville, to be
   expended in the erection of a temporary State-house, which was then
   under contract. The message concluded by recommending a revision of
   the statutes, the organization of the judicial department, the
   election of judges, and the appointment by law of an engineer to
   examine the rivers, who was to report in what manner their navigation
   might be improved.
   
   The legislature proceeded to elect two Senators of the United States.
   William R. King and John W. Walker were elected upon the first ballot,
   over Thomas D. Crabb and George Phillips.
   
   During the session of the legislature, General Jackson visited
   Huntsville with his horses, and was enthusiastically engaged in the
   sports of the turf, then an amusement indulged Session in by the
   highest classes. Colonel Howell Rose, a Senator from the county of
   Autauga, was also at Huntsville. Colonel Rose was then a young man of
   indomitable energy and fearless spirit, and possessed a native
   intellect of remarkable vigor and strength. He was ardent in his
   attachment to Jackson, and was the first to propose resolutions
   approbatory of his valuable services to the State performed during the
   late Creek and Seminole wars. Colonel Rose introduced joint
   resolutions of this character, together with one inviting the general
   to a seat within the bar both of the House and the Senate on all
   occasions when it should be his pleasure to attend those bodies, which
   were adopted. Colonel Rose, at the head of a committee, waited upon
   Jackson, with a copy of the resolutions, to which the latter replied
   in a letter full of the liveliest gratitude. Since that interesting
   occasion Colonel Rose has from time to time performed valuable
   services to the State, as a member of the General Assembly. He is a
   wealthy citizen of the county of Coosa. His mind, naturally one of the
   richest in the country, and improved by self-instruction, is still
   vigorous and clear, while his agreeable eccentricity of manner, and
   original ideas and sayings, engage the attention of all who are thrown
   in his way. His colloquial powers are of a very high as well as of a
   very peculiar order. He delivers his views with force and energy, and
   is never at a loss for a spicy repartee. While he was addressing the
   members of the legislature, he never failed to engage their attention.
   Colonel Rose was born in North Carolina, removed from thence to
   Georgia, and emigrated to Alabama soon after the Creek war.
   
   So soon as the judicial circuits were organized, the legislature
   proceeded to elect officers. Henry Hitchcock, the former Territorial
   Secretary, was elected Attorney-General over John S. N. Jones and D.
   Sullivan. Abner S. Lipscomb was elected Judge of the First Judicial
   Circuit over Harry Toulmin; Reuben Saffold, Judge of the second
   without opposition; Henry Y. Webb, Judge of the third without
   opposition; Richard Ellis, Judge of the fourth over Beverly Hughes and
   John McKinley; Clement C. Clay, Judge of the fifth without opposition.
   
   John Gayle was elected Solicitor of the First Judicial Circuit without
   opposition; Constantine Perkins, of the third, over Sion L. Perry;
   Peter Martin, of the fourth, without opposition; James Eastland, of
   the fifth, over James W. McClung and Poladore Naylor.
   
   The legislature was exceedingly anxious to see the laws enforced; and,
   for that purpose, selected magistrates from among the most respectable
   and prominent men throughout the State. They discharged the same
   duties which the Judges of the County Courts had done previous to the
   adoption of the present Probate system, and as was the practice of
   Virginia. A few of those now selected must be mentioned merely to show
   the determination of our then infant State, to give tone and dignity
   to the administration of the laws, even in inferior courts. For the
   county of Autauga, for instance, John A. Elmore, John Armstrong,
   Robert Gaston, James Jackson and William R. Pickett were elected
   magistrates.
   
   General John A. Elmore, one of these justices, was a native of South
   Carolina, of the legislature of which State he had often been a
   respectable member. Not long after his removal to Alabama, he
   represented the county of Autauga in our legislature, which then sat
   at Cahawba. He was a man of firmness and much good sense, and always
   delivered his opinions, even in common conversation, in a distinct and
   loud voice, with that candor and honesty which characterized his
   conduct through life. He had a commanding appearance, was large in
   person, and, altogether, an exceedingly fine looking man. He delighted
   in the sports of the chase, being a most successful and spirited
   hunter, and an agreeable companion in the many camp-hunts in which he
   engaged with his neighbors and friends. Towards the close of his life,
   we remember that he presented a dignified and venerable appearance,
   and we saw him preside as chairman of several large and exciting
   meetings in the town of Montgomery during the days of nullification.
   
   James Jackson, another of these magistrates, was born in the county of
   Wilkes, Georgia. He had been a man of influence in that region. Upon
   his arrival, in 1818, in the Territory of Alabama, he immediately
   ranked with the leading men of the county of Autauga. He was elected a
   member of the State convention, and assisted to give us the excellent
   constitution we now have. Afterwards, Mr. Jackson was several times an
   active and influential member of the House of Representatives and of
   the Senate of the State of Alabama. He died the 19th July, 1832, at
   his residence in Autauga, within a few miles of that of General
   Elmore, who also died about that period. Mr. Jackson was a man for
   whom nature had done much. Although raised upon the frontiers of
   Georgia, among a rude population, and thrown upon the world with but
   little means and still less education, he was decidedly elegant in
   conversation and polite and polished in his manners. He had the
   faculty of adapting himself to all classes. In person he was of medium
   size, his face was handsome and expressive, and, when meeting a
   friend, was generally enlivened with a smile. He was a most excellent
   and liberal neighbor. Smooth and fluent in conversation, and
   conciliating in his general views, he was a most delightful fireside
   companion. He was shrewd and sagacious, and a close and correct
   observer of human nature.
   
   The author, being the son of William R. Pickett, another of the
   Autauga magistrates, is relieved from the delicate task of portraying
   his character by copying the following obituary, written by a friend
   for the gazettes:
   
   "Colonel William Raiford Pickett died at his residence, in Autauga
   county, on the 20th September, 1850, aged seventy-three years. Colonel
   Pickett was born in Anson county, North Carolina, upon the Pedee
   river, where his parents, James Pickett and Martha Terry, had removed
   some time before the revolutionary war from their place of nativity,
   near Bolling Green, in Caroline county, Virginia. Their ancestors,
   whose extraction was Scotch, English and French, were among the
   earliest colonists of Virginia.
   
   "Soon after he became of age Colonel Pickett filled the post of
   sheriff of Anson county, and was afterwards elected to the
   legislature, which sat at Raleigh, where he served for several years.
   When the federal revenue was collected by direct taxation, he received
   from Mr. Madison, then President, the appointment of assessor and
   collector for a large district in North Carolina, the arduous and
   responsible duties of which he discharged to the end with zeal and
   fidelity.
   
   "In the spring of 1818 he brought his family out to this country, and
   established himself as a planter and merchant in the present Autauga
   county, which then formed a portion of the county of Montgomery. Two
   years before this early period he had explored these southwestern
   wilds, in company with his near relative and friend, Tod Robinson,
   encountering dangers and hardships incident upon the close of a
   sanguinary war with the Creeks.
   
   "When the legislature of Alabama sat at Cahawba, Colonel Pickett took
   his seat in that body in 1821. In 1823 he was a member, and again in
   1824, which term closed his duties in the Lower House. In 1828 he was
   elected to the State Senate, and entered that body in the fall of that
   year at Tuscaloosa, then the capital of Alabama. He was a Senator for
   the period of five years, when, in the summer of 1834, he was beaten
   for that position by Colonel Broadnax, during an exceedingly high
   state of party excitement, the election turning solely upon party
   grounds, and many of his old friends voting against him with much
   reluctance. In his legislative career, he was an active and very
   influential member, and was the originator of many salutary laws, some
   of which are still ill force. In the meantime, he was three times
   placed upon the democratic electoral ticket for President and
   Vice-President, and each time received overwhelming majorities.
   
   "He was a man of sterling honor and integrity, and, perhaps, no one
   ever surpassed him in disinterested benevolence and charity, for he
   not only supported the poor and destitute around him, but freely
   dispensed to those upon the highway. In person, he was large, erect
   and commanding, with a face beaming with intelligence, a forehead bold
   and lofty, and eyes brilliant and expressive, to the last moments of
   his existence. He was peculiarly remarkable for his wit and
   originality, and the risible faculties of more men have been aroused,
   while in his company, than in that of almost any other person. And
   even to this day, in North Carolina, though thirty-two years have
   transpired since he left that State, his original sayings and
   anecdotes are often repeated. No man ever received more attention,
   during his protracted illness, from those in his immediate
   neighborhood, who deeply mourn his departure from their midst. Persons
   from all parts of the country visited him in his affliction."
   
   The legislature of Alabama, during its session at Huntsville, enacted
   many salutary laws, and judiciously arranged the districts. Six new
   counties were established, and were added to those already organized.
   They were Greene, Jefferson, Session Perry, Henry, Wilcox and Butler.
   Wilcox was of 1819 named in honor of the lieutenant, who, in 1814, was
   killed by the Indians upon the Alabama river, as we have seen, and
   Butler in memory of the captain, who was also killed by the Indians,
   near Fort Dale, on the 20th March, 1818. The legislature adjourned on
   the 17th December, 1819.*
   
   * State Archives.
   
   The land offices at Milledgeville and Huntsville were in active
   operation. Extensive surveys had been completed, 1819-20 sales had
   been everywhere proclaimed, and thousands of eager purchasers flocked
   into the country from every Atlantic and Western State. Never before
   or since, did the population of any State so rapidly increase as that
   of Alabama from the period of 1820 until 1830.
   
   No sooner had the flourishing State of Alabama been thoroughly
   organized, than the citizens were called upon to mourn the death of
   their first governor. Riding in the forest one day, the horse of
   Governor Bibb fell with him to the ground, and he then received an
   injury from which he never recovered. He died at his residence, in the
   county of Autauga, in July, 1820, in the fortieth year of his
   age--calm, collected, peaceful--surrounded by numerous friends and
   relations.
   
   Governor Bibb was five feet ten inches in height, with an erect but
   delicate frame. He was exceedingly easy and graceful in his bearing.
   His interesting face bore the marks of deep thought and great
   intelligence. His eyes, of a dark color, were mild, yet expressive.
   Whether thrown into the company of the rude or the refined, his
   language was pure and chaste. No one ever lived, either in Georgia or
   Alabama, who was treated with a greater degree of respect by all
   classes. This was owing to his high moral character, unsurpassed
   honor, excellent judgment, and a very high order of talents. Entirely
   free from that dogmatism and those patronizing airs which characterize
   many of our distinguished men, he invariably treated the opinions of
   the humblest citizen with courtesy and respect. He was, however, a man
   of firmness, swaying the minds of men with great success, and
   governing by seeming to obey.
   
   In all the stations which he filled, Governor Bibb was eminently
   successful. When quite a young man his skill and attention as a
   physician, in the then flourishing town of Petersburg, Georgia,
   secured for him an extensive practice. He next went into the
   legislature from Elbert county, and, serving four years in that body,
   acquired a popularity rarely attained by one of his age. At the early
   age of twenty-five he was elected to Congress under the General Ticket
   System, by a vote so large as to leave no doubt but that he was a
   great favorite with the people. He immediately became a leading member
   of the Lower House of the National Legislature -- was an able and
   fearless advocate of the war of 1812, and a conscientious supporter of
   the administration of Madison. His contemporaries, at his first
   election, were Bolling Hall, George M. Troup and Howell Cobb. He had
   not been long in Congress before his popularity caused him to come
   within a few votes of being elected to the office of Speaker of the
   House. Afterwards the legislature of Georgia elected him to the Senate
   of the United States. He was thus a member of Congress from 1806 until
   1816, when as we have seen in the preceding pages. he was appointed by
   the President, Governor of Alabama Territory, and was afterwards
   elected by the people Governor of the State of Alabama. In reference
   to his Congressional career, we have often heard, from the lips of
   many of his distinguished contemporaries, that the practical order of
   his mind, the wisdom of his views, and the peculiar music of his
   voice, contributed to render him one of the most attractive and
   effective of speakers.
   
   When Governor Bibb first established himself as a physician he married
   Mary, only daughter of Colonel Holman Freeman, of revolutionary
   memory, and then a citizen of Wilkes county. She was one of the most
   beautiful and accomplished ladies of her day, and has ever been
   esteemed and admired by the early inhabitants of Alabama. She is now
   residing in the county of Dallas, in the enjoyment of fine health.
   Governor Bibb left two children by this lady--a son and a daughter.
   The latter, the late Mrs. Alfred V. Scott, who died some years ago,
   was much like her father in the mildness of her disposition, the grace
   and ease of her manners, and the intellectual beauty of her face.
   
   After the death of Governor Bibb his brother, Thomas Bibb, who was
   President of the Senate, became the acting governor. He was a man of
   strong mind and indomitable energy.
   
   In the preceding pages we have alluded to the mother of Governor Bibb.
   She was one of the most remarkable women we ever knew, for energy,
   decision, and superior sense. When Captain Bibb, her husband, died, he
   left her with eight children, and an estate much embarrassed by debt.
   Benajah, the ninth child, was born a few months after the death of his
   father. Mrs. Bibb worked the estate out of debt--educated her
   children, and lived to see them all in affluence, and many of them
   enjoying offices of honor and profit. She was known to the early
   inhabitants of Alabama, by whom she was much esteemed, as Mrs.
   Barnett, having married a gentleman of that name. Thomas Bibb
   resembled his mother m The memory of Governor William Wyatt Bibb is
   preserved in the name of a county in Georgia, and one in Alabama.
   
   But here we lay down our pen. The early history of Alabama, as far as
   it rests in our hands, is ended, and our task is accomplished. To some
   other person, fonder than we are of the dry details of State
   legislation and fierce party spirit, we leave the task of bringing the
   history down to a later period.
   
                                  THE END
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