Spencer JARNAGIN, Congress, TN (1792-1853)

JARNAGIN, Spencer, a Senator from Tennessee; born in Grainger County, Tenn., in 1792; pursued classical studies and graduated from Greenville College in 1813; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1817 and commenced practice in Knoxville; member, State senate 1833-1835; trustee of the East Tennessee College 1836-1851; moved to Athens, Tenn., in 1837 and continued the practice of his profession; presidential elector on the Whig ticket in 1840; Whig nominee for United States Senator in 1841 but the general assembly adjourned without electing a Senator; elected as a Whig to the United States Senate and served from October 17, 1843, to March 3, 1847; chairman, Committee on Revolutionary Claims (Twenty-eighth Congress); unsuccessful candidate for reelection to the Senate and for member of the supreme court of Tennessee; moved to Memphis and continued the practice of law; died in Memphis, Tenn., June 25, 1853; interment in Elmwood Cemetery.

Bibliography

McKellar, Kenneth. “Spencer Jarnagin,” in Tennessee Senators as Seen by One of their Successors. Kingsport, Tenn.: Southern Publishers, Inc., 1942, 231-237; Moore, Powell. “James K. Polk and the Immortal Thirteen.” East Tennessee Historical Society’s Publications 11 (1939): 20-33.

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