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John M. Clayton (Arkansas)
Encyclopedia
This article is about the assassinated Arkansas
Republican
. For the U.S. Secretary of State
and Senator
from Delaware
with the same name, see John M. Clayton
.
John Middleton Clayton (October 13, 1840 – January 29, 1889) was a Republican
Congressman
-elect in post-Civil War
Arkansas
. He may be best remembered for his mysterious assassination
in 1889. The identity of his assassin remains unknown.
Clayton and his twin brother, William (W.H.H. Clayton
), were born on a farm near Chester, Pennsylvania
to John and Ann Glover Clayton. His father was an orchard
keeper and carpenter
. His parents had ten children in all, although six died in infancy. Clayton went on to marry a woman named Sarah Ann with whom he had six children. During the Civil War
, he served in the Army of the Potomac
where he engaged in several campaigns
in the east. In 1867, he and his family moved to Arkansas
where he managed a plantation owned by older brother, Powell Clayton
, who would become the Governor of Arkansas the next year.
In 1871, Clayton was elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives
representing Jefferson County
, his brother, Powell, starting his term in the United States Senate
the same year. In 1873, he served in the Arkansas Senate
representing Jefferson, Bradley
, Grant and Lincoln Counties
, also serving as Speaker of the Senate
pro tempore for part of his term. He served on the first board of trustees of Arkansas Industrial University, today the University of Arkansas
, when it was chartered in 1871. Two years later, Clayton helped Pine Bluff, Arkansas
secure the Branch Normal College, today the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
. He became involved in the Brooks-Baxter War
of 1874 which was fought over the disputed election for the governor's office between Joseph Brooks
and Elisha Baxter
. Clayton, a supporter of Brooks', raised troops in Jefferson County and marched them to Little Rock, Arkansas
where they fought Baxter supporters. He remained loyal to Brooks to the end of the conflict when President
Ulysses S. Grant
declared Baxter the rightful governor.
Clayton remained involved in Arkansas
politics in the years after Reconstruction. With the support of black
Republican
voters, he became sheriff of Jefferson County in 1876, being reelected to five successive, two year terms. In 1888, he ran to represent Arkansas's 2nd congressional district
in the United States House of Representatives
, going up against incumbent Democrat
Clifton R. Breckinridge
. The election became one of the most fraudulent in Arkansas' history. Clayton lost the election by a narrow margin of 846 out of over 34,000 votes cast. However, in one case in Conway County, four masked and armed white
men stormed into a predominately black voting precinct and, at gunpoint, stole the ballot box that contained a large majority of votes for Clayton. Losing under such circumstances, Clayton decided to contest the election and went to Plumerville, Arkansas
to start an investigation on the matter. On the evening of January 29, 1889, an unknown assailant shot through the window to the room he was staying in at a local boardinghouse and killed him instantly. He was later declared the winner of the election and Breckinridge was unseated and the seat declared vacant. His assassin was never found.
Clayton was interred in Bellwood Cemetery in Pine Bluff, Arkansas
.
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. For the U.S. Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
and Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
with the same name, see John M. Clayton
John M. Clayton
John Middleton Clayton was an American lawyer and politician from Delaware. He was a member of the Whig Party who served in the Delaware General Assembly, and as U.S. Senator from Delaware and U.S. Secretary of State....
.
John Middleton Clayton (October 13, 1840 – January 29, 1889) was a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Congressman
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
-elect in post-Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
. He may be best remembered for his mysterious assassination
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
in 1889. The identity of his assassin remains unknown.
Biography
W.H.H. Clayton
William Henry Harrison Clayton best known as W.H.H. Clayton was a prominent lawyer and judge in post-Civil War Arkansas and Indian Territory Oklahoma...
), were born on a farm near Chester, Pennsylvania
Chester, Pennsylvania
Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, with a population of 33,972 at the 2010 census. Chester is situated on the Delaware River, between the cities of Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware.- History :...
to John and Ann Glover Clayton. His father was an orchard
Orchard
An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit or nut-producing trees which are grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive...
keeper and carpenter
Carpenter
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
. His parents had ten children in all, although six died in infancy. Clayton went on to marry a woman named Sarah Ann with whom he had six children. During the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, he served in the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
where he engaged in several campaigns
Military campaign
In the military sciences, the term military campaign applies to large scale, long duration, significant military strategy plan incorporating a series of inter-related military operations or battles forming a distinct part of a larger conflict often called a war...
in the east. In 1867, he and his family moved to Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
where he managed a plantation owned by older brother, Powell Clayton
Powell Clayton
Powell Clayton was an engineer, a Union Army general in the American Civil War, the first Reconstruction Governor of the State of Arkansas, and Ambassador to Mexico during the administrations of William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.-Early life:Clayton was born in Bethel, Pennsylvania, to John...
, who would become the Governor of Arkansas the next year.
In 1871, Clayton was elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives
Arkansas House of Representatives
The Arkansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The House is composed of 100 members elected from an equal amount of constituencies across the state. Each district has an average population of 26,734...
representing Jefferson County
Jefferson County, Arkansas
Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. Its population was 77,435 at the 2010 United States Census. It is included in the Pine Bluff Metropolitan Statistical Area. Jefferson County's county seat and largest city is Pine Bluff...
, his brother, Powell, starting his term in the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
the same year. In 1873, he served in the Arkansas Senate
Arkansas Senate
The Arkansas State Senate is the upper branch of the Arkansas General Assembly. The Senate consists of 35 members, each representing a district with about 76,000 people. Service in the state legislature is part-time, and many state senators have full-time jobs during the rest of the year. The...
representing Jefferson, Bradley
Bradley County, Arkansas
Bradley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population to be 14,683 in 2006. The county seat is Warren. Bradley County is Arkansas's 43rd county, formed on December 18, 1840, and named for Captain Hugh Bradley, who fought in the...
, Grant and Lincoln Counties
Lincoln County, Arkansas
Lincoln County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas and is included in the Pine Bluff Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population is 14,134. The county seat is Star City. Lincoln County is Arkansas's 65th county, formed on March 28, 1871, and named for Abraham Lincoln,...
, also serving as Speaker of the Senate
Speaker of the Senate
Speaker of the Senate is a title given to the presiding officer of the Senate in a small number of jurisdictions and mainly amongst English-speaking countries.*The Speaker of the Canadian Senate presides over the Senate of Canada....
pro tempore for part of his term. He served on the first board of trustees of Arkansas Industrial University, today the University of Arkansas
University of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...
, when it was chartered in 1871. Two years later, Clayton helped Pine Bluff, Arkansas
Pine Bluff, Arkansas
Pine Bluff is the largest city and county seat of Jefferson County, Arkansas, United States. It is also the principal city of the Pine Bluff Metropolitan Statistical Area and part of the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Pine Bluff, Arkansas Combined Statistical Area...
secure the Branch Normal College, today the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is a historically black university located in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1873, it is the oldest HBCU and the second oldest public institution in the state of Arkansas . UAPB is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
. He became involved in the Brooks-Baxter War
Brooks-Baxter War
The Brooks–Baxter War was an armed conflict in Little Rock, Arkansas, in the United States, in 1874 between factions of the Republican Party over the disputed 1872 election for governor...
of 1874 which was fought over the disputed election for the governor's office between Joseph Brooks
Joseph Brooks
Joseph Brooks was a Republican politician in Arkansas after the Civil War. He is mainly remembered for losing the 1872 gubernatorial race in Arkansas and then leading a coup d'état, now referred to as the Brooks–Baxter War, in 1874.-Early life:Joseph Brooks was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and worked...
and Elisha Baxter
Elisha Baxter
Elisha Baxter was the tenth Governor of the State of Arkansas.-Biography:Elisha Baxter was born in Rutherford County, North Carolina. Baxter received an appointment to the United States Military Academy but his father would not allow him to attend.In 1852 Baxter moved to Arkansas and opened a...
. Clayton, a supporter of Brooks', raised troops in Jefferson County and marched them to Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
where they fought Baxter supporters. He remained loyal to Brooks to the end of the conflict when President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
declared Baxter the rightful governor.
Clayton remained involved in Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
politics in the years after Reconstruction. With the support of black
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
voters, he became sheriff of Jefferson County in 1876, being reelected to five successive, two year terms. In 1888, he ran to represent Arkansas's 2nd congressional district
Arkansas's 2nd congressional district
Arkansas's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district located in the central part of the U.S. state of Arkansas and includes the state capital of Little Rock as well as its suburbs and surrounding areas....
in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, going up against incumbent Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Clifton R. Breckinridge
Clifton R. Breckinridge
Clifton Rodes Breckinridge was a Democratic alderman, congressman, diplomat, businessman and veteran of the Confederate Army and Navy. He was a member of the prominent Breckinridge family, the son of Vice President of the United States and Confederate General John C. Breckinridge and the...
. The election became one of the most fraudulent in Arkansas' history. Clayton lost the election by a narrow margin of 846 out of over 34,000 votes cast. However, in one case in Conway County, four masked and armed white
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
men stormed into a predominately black voting precinct and, at gunpoint, stole the ballot box that contained a large majority of votes for Clayton. Losing under such circumstances, Clayton decided to contest the election and went to Plumerville, Arkansas
Plumerville, Arkansas
Plumerville is a city in Conway County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 854 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Plumerville is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land....
to start an investigation on the matter. On the evening of January 29, 1889, an unknown assailant shot through the window to the room he was staying in at a local boardinghouse and killed him instantly. He was later declared the winner of the election and Breckinridge was unseated and the seat declared vacant. His assassin was never found.
Clayton was interred in Bellwood Cemetery in Pine Bluff, Arkansas
Pine Bluff, Arkansas
Pine Bluff is the largest city and county seat of Jefferson County, Arkansas, United States. It is also the principal city of the Pine Bluff Metropolitan Statistical Area and part of the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Pine Bluff, Arkansas Combined Statistical Area...
.