George Davis (politician)

For the U.S. Representative from Illinois, see George R. Davis.

George Davis
4th Confederate States Attorney General
In office January 2, 1864 – April 24, 1865
President	Jefferson Davis
Preceded by	Wade Keyes (Acting)
Succeeded by	Position abolished
Confederate States Senator from North Carolina
In office February 18, 1862 – January 2, 1864
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Edwin Reade
Personal details
Born	(1820-03-01)March 1, 1820 Wilmington, North Carolina, U.S.
Died	February 23, 1896(1896-02-23) (aged 75) Wilmington, North Carolina, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

George Davis (March 1, 1820 – February 23, 1896) was a Confederate States of America political figure and the last Confederate Attorney General, serving from 1864 to 1865.

He was in fact related to Confederate President Jefferson Davis.

Early life and career

Born near Wilmington, North Carolina, Davis attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was valedictorian of the class of 1838. He subsequently studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1840. In 1848 he became general counsel of the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad. He held this position the rest of his life.

Political career

Davis was a delegate from North Carolina to the unsuccessful Washington Peace Conference of February 4–27, 1861.

After secession

Davis was a delegate to the Provisional Confederate Congress in 1861–1862, and was then elected to the Senate, where he served from 1862 to 1864. In December 1863, President Jefferson Davis appointed him Attorney General. He served in this position from January 2, 1864 until April 24, 1865, in the last days of the Confederacy.

After the war

Davis was captured by U.S. forces at Key West, Florida on October 18, 1865, and was imprisoned at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, N.Y. He spent several months at Fort Hamilton before being pardoned in 1866. He then returned to law practice in Wilmington.

Legacy

In World War II, the United States liberty ship SS George Davis was named in his honor.^[1] A statue of Davis also stands in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Statue of George Davis in historic downtown Wilmington NC.

References

Bibliography

• Patrick, Rembert W. (1944). Jefferson Davis and His Cabinet. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. pp. 104–120. 

External links

• "George Davis". Find a Grave. Retrieved 2009-04-14. 
• Short biography csawardept.com

Cabinet of President Jefferson Davis (1861–1865) Vice President Alexander H. Stephens (1861–65) Secretary of State Robert Toombs (1861) Robert M. T. Hunter (1861–62) Judah P. Benjamin (1862–65) Secretary of the Treasury Christopher Memminger (1861–64) George A. Trenholm (1864–65) John H. Reagan (1865) Secretary of War Leroy P. Walker (1861) Judah P. Benjamin (1861–62) George W. Randolph (1862) James A. Seddon (1862–65) John C. Breckinridge (1865) Secretary of the Navy Stephen R. Mallory (1861–65) Postmaster General John H. Reagan (1861–1865) Attorney General Judah P. Benjamin (1861) Thomas Bragg (1861–1862) Thomas H. Watts (1862–63) George Davis (1864–65)