Charles Henry Martin was a United States Representative from North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

. Martin was born near Youngsville

Youngsville, North Carolina

Youngsville is a town in Franklin County, North Carolina, United States.The population was 651 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Youngsville is located at ....

, Franklin County, N.C.

Franklin County, North Carolina

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 47,260 people, 17,843 households, and 12,882 families residing in the county. The population density was 96 people per square mile . There were 20,364 housing units at an average density of 41 per square mile...

, on August 28, 1848. He attended the common schools and the preparatory department of Wake Forest College, graduating from Wake Forest in 1872 and from the University of Virginia

University of Virginia

The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...

 at Charlottesville in 1875. He later studied at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary , located in Louisville, Kentucky, is the oldest of the six seminaries affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention . The seminary was founded in 1859, at Greenville, South Carolina. After being closed during the Civil War, it moved in 1877 to Louisville...

 in Louisville, Kentucky.

Martin worked as a principal of the high schools at Badin

Badin, North Carolina

Badin is a town located in Stanly County, North Carolina. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 1,154.-Geography:Badin is located at 35°24'17" North, 80°6'57" West ....

 and Lumberton, North Carolina

Lumberton, North Carolina

Lumberton is a city in Robeson County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 20,795 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Robeson County. Lumberton, located in southern North Carolina's Inner Banks region, is located on the Lumber River...

 and was a professor of Latin at a female college at Murfreesboro, North Carolina

Murfreesboro, North Carolina

Murfreesboro is a town in Hertford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,045 at the 2000 census. Murfreesboro is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region.-Geography:Murfreesboro is located at ....

 and later taught at Wake Forest College. He was admitted to the bar

Bar (law)

Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...

 in 1879, practicing law in Louisburg

Louisburg, North Carolina

Louisburg is a town in Franklin County, North Carolina, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 3,111. It is the county seat of Franklin County...

 and later in Raleigh

Raleigh, North Carolina

Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...

. Martin was ordained as a Baptist

Baptist

Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...

 minister in 1887.

Martin moved to Polkton, North Carolina

Polkton, North Carolina

Polkton is a town in Anson County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 1,195.The town is named after its founder, Leonidas L...

 after marrying Mary Williams, who was from that area. There, he ran against Democrat James A. Lockhart

James A. Lockhart

James Alexander Lockhart was a United States Representative from North Carolina. He was born in Anson County, North Carolina, on June 2, 1850, and attended the common schools...

 for Congress (6th District

North Carolina's 6th congressional district

North Carolina's 6th congressional district is located in the Piedmont Triad of North Carolina. The 6th District comprises all of Moore and Randolph counties and portions of Alamance, Davidson, Guilford, and Rowan counties....

) as a Populist

Populist Party (United States)

The People's Party, also known as the "Populists", was a short-lived political party in the United States established in 1891. It was most important in 1892-96, then rapidly faded away...

 in 1894. After Lockhart was at first declared the winner, Martin successfully contested the election and was seated by the House during the Fifty-fourth Congress. He was reelected to the Fifty-fifth Congress and served from June 5, 1896, to March 3, 1899. Martin did not seek renomination in 1898 and resumed his ministerial duties at Polkton, where he died on April 19, 1931.