Hopkins L. Turney

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Hopkins Lacy Turney (October 3, 1797 – August 1, 1857) was a Democratic U.S. Representative and United States Senator from Tennessee.

Hopkins Lacy Turney
United States Senator
from Tennessee
In office
March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1851
Preceded byEphraim H. Foster
Succeeded byJames C. Jones
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Tennessee's 5th district
In office
March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1843
Preceded byJohn B. Forester
Succeeded byGeorge W. Jones
Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives
In office
1828
Personal details
Born(1797-10-03)October 3, 1797
Smith County, Tennessee, U.S.
DiedAugust 1, 1857(1857-08-01) (aged 59)
Winchester, Tennessee, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
ProfessionPolitician, Lawyer

Biography

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Turney was born in the Smith County settlement of Dixon Springs, Tennessee. As a youth, he was apprenticed to a tailor. He served in the Seminole War in 1818. Subsequent to this he studied law, and passed the bar examination and began a practice in Jasper, Tennessee. Later he moved to Winchester, Tennessee, continuing the practice of law. He owned slaves.[1] He was first elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives in 1828.

He married Teresa Francis, the daughter of Miller Francis and Hannah Henry, in 1826. She was born December 9, 1809, and died September 5, 1879. Hopkins and Teresa were the parents of nine children.

Their son Peter Turney (September 22, 1827 – October 19, 1903) was Chief Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court from 1870 to 1893; and served as governor of the U.S. state of Tennessee from 1893 to 1897.[2]

He was then elected to the U.S. House, serving three terms in that body from 1837 to 1843, the 25th through 27th Congresses. Subsequent to this he was elected by the Tennessee General Assembly to the U.S. Senate, returning to Washington, D.C., after a two-year hiatus and serving one six-year term in that body, where he was chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Retrenchment for four years and the U.S. Senate Committee on Patents and the Patent Office for two before returning to his law practice, which he engaged in until shortly before his death. He is buried in Winchester.

Notes

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  1. ^ "Congress slaveowners", The Washington Post, 2022-01-19, retrieved 2022-07-08
  2. ^ "Death List Of The Day - Peter Turney". New York Times. October 20, 1903. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
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U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Tennessee's 5th congressional district

March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1843
Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 1) from Tennessee
March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1851
Served alongside: Spencer Jarnagin and John Bell
Succeeded by