LEA, Luke, Congress, TN (1783-1851)

LEA, Luke, (great-grandfather of Luke Lea [1879-1945] and brother of Pryor Lea), a Representative from Tennessee; born in Surry County, N.C., January 21, 1783; moved to Tennessee in 1790 with his parents, who settled in Hawkins County; attended the common schools; clerk in the state house of representatives 1804-1806; commanded a regiment under General Jackson in the Creek and Seminole Wars in 1818; located at Campbells Station, Tenn., and held several minor offices; elected as a Jacksonian to the Twenty-third Congress and reelected as an Anti-Jacksonian to the Twenty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1833-March 3, 1837); secretary of state of Tennessee 1837-1839; appointed by President Fillmore as Indian agent at Fort Leavenworth, Kans., September 23, 1850, and served until his death near Fort Leavenworth, Kans., June 17, 1851; interment in Westport Cemetery (now abandoned), Kansas City, Mo.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present