Gov. John Cummins Edwards

About

JOHN C. EDWARDS was born in Frankfort, Kentucky on June 24, 1806. His education was attained at Dr. Henderson’s Classical School near Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He studied law under the state’s attorney for Rutherford County and was admitted to the bar in 1825, following which he established his legal career in Jefferson City, Missouri. In 1828 Edwards first entered politics as the secretary of state of Missouri, a position he held from 1830 to 1835 and 1837. He also served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives in 1836, was justice of the Missouri State Supreme Court from 1837 to 1839, and served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1841 to 1843. Edwards next secured the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, and was elected governor on August 5, 1844. During his tenure, telegraph service was initiated within the state; nineteen new counties were formed; an Iowa boundary disagreement was resolved; and the Mexican War was dealt with. After completing his term, Edwards left office on November 20, 1848. The following year he moved to California, where he served as the mayor of Stockton in 1851. Governor John C. Edwards passed away on September 17, 1888, and was buried in the Rural Cemetery in Stockton, California.

Source

Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress

Missouri Secretary of State

Missouri State Archives (Jefferson City, MO)

The Political Graveyard

Sobel, Robert, and John Raimo, eds. Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. 2, Westport, Conn.; Meckler Books, 1978. 4 vols.