John Wilbur Atwater was a 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...

 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...

 between 1899 and 1901.

Atwater, born near Fearrington, North Carolina

Fearrington, North Carolina

Fearrington is a census-designated place in Chatham County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 903 at the 2000 census. Its name is pronounced FAIR-ington, not FEAR-ington as the spelling might indicate.-Geography:...

 in 1840, attended common schools and the William Closs Academy. A farmer, he enlisted in the Confederate Army during the American 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...

, serving in Company D, First Regiment, of the North Carolina Volunteer Infantry; he was with the army of Gen. Robert E. Lee

Robert E. Lee

Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....

 until the Lee's surrender at Appomattox

Appomattox

Appomattox may refer to:*Appomattox, Virginia, a town*Appomattox County, Virginia* Appomattox Basin, a name for the Tri-Cities, Virginia region*Appomattox Court House, a court house in Virginia...

.

Atwater joined the Farmers' Alliance

Farmers' Alliance

The Farmers Alliance was an organized agrarian economic movement amongst U.S. farmers that flourished in the 1880s. One of the goals of the organization was to end the adverse effects of the crop-lien system on farmers after the American Civil War...

 in 1887, and was the first president of the Chatham County

Chatham County, North Carolina

Chatham County is a county located in the Piedmont area of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 49,329. Its county seat is Pittsboro.-History:...

 Alliance. He was elected to the North Carolina Senate

North Carolina Senate

The North Carolina Senate is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly.Its prerogatives and powers are similar to those of the other house, the House of Representatives. Its members do, however, represent districts that are larger than those of their colleagues in the House. The...

 in 1890 as an Alliance Democrat; he was subsequently elected in 1892 and 1896 as a Populist. In 1898, as an Independent Populist, Atwater was sent to the 56th U.S. Congress

56th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:- Leadership :- Senate :* President: Garret Hobart , until November 21, 1899 , vacant thereafter.* President pro tempore: William P. Frye * Democratic Caucus Chairman: James K. Jones...

, serving from March 4, 1899 to March 3, 1901. He unsuccessfully ran for re-election in 1900 and returned to farming. He died in Fearington in 1910 and is buried in the Mount Pleasant Church Cemetery near Pittsboro

Pittsboro, North Carolina

Pittsboro, North Carolina is a town located in Chatham County, 34 miles southwest of Raleigh, 47 miles southeast of Greensboro, and 17 miles south of Chapel Hill. The population was 3,743 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Chatham County....

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External links

• John Atwater at Find-A-Grave