John Henninger Reagan

John Henninger Reagan (October 8, 1818 – March 6, 1905), was a leading 19th-century American politician from the U.S. state of Texas. A Democrat, Reagan left the U.S. House of Representatives when his state seceded from the Union to join the Confederate States of America. During the American Civil War, he served in the cabinet of Jefferson Davis as Postmaster-General. After the Confederate defeat, he called for cooperation with the federal government and became unpopular, but returned to public office when his predictions of harsh treatment for resistance were proved correct.

Return to public life

When the harshness of Reconstruction became apparent, his prescience was hailed—he became known as the "Old Roman," a Texas Cincinnatus. He was part of the successful effort to remove the Republican Edmund J. Davis from the governorship in 1874, after he attempted to illegally remain in office. That year he returned to the Congressional seat he held before the war, serving from March 4, 1875 to March 3, 1887. In 1875, he served in the convention that wrote a new state constitution for Texas. In Congress, he advocated federal regulation of railroads and helped create the Interstate Commerce Commission. Though he had been elected to the Senate in 1887 (serving March 4, 1887 to June 10, 1891), he resigned to become chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission at the behest of his friend, Governor James Stephen Hogg, chairing it until 1903.

Related Topics:
Cincinnatus - Edmund J. Davis - 1874 - March 4 - 1875 - March 3 - 1887 - Interstate Commerce Commission - June 10 - 1891 - Texas Railroad Commission - James Stephen Hogg - 1903

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Conscious of the importance of history, he was a founder of the Texas State Historical Association and attended reunions of Confederate veterans in his state. He wrote his Memoirs, With Special Reference to Secession and the Civil War, published in 1905, and died at his home in Palestine in Anderson County later that year, the last surviving member of the government of the Confederacy.

Related Topics:
Texas State Historical Association - 1905

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Historian Ben H. Procter included Reagan in his list of the "four greatest Texans of the 19th century," along with Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin, and James Stephen Hogg.

Related Topics:
Ben H. Procter - Sam Houston - Stephen F. Austin - James Stephen Hogg

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

See also: Postage stamps and postal history of the Confederate States

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~