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Thomas M. Norwood

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"Senator Norwood" redirects here. For the Mississippi state senate member, see Sollie Norwood.
Thomas Manson Norwood
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Georgia's 1st district
In office
March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1889
Preceded byJohn C. Nicholls
Succeeded byJames W. Overstreet
United States Senator
from Georgia
In office
November 14, 1871 – March 3, 1877
Preceded byHomer V. M. Miller
Succeeded byBenjamin H. Hill
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives
In office
1851–1862
Personal details
Born(1830-04-26)April 26, 1830
Talbot County, Georgia
DiedJune 19, 1913(1913-06-19) (aged 83)
Savannah, Georgia
Political partyDemocratic

Thomas Manson Norwood (April 26, 1830 – June 19, 1913) was a United States senator and Representative from Georgia.

Early years and education

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Born in Talbot County, Georgia, he pursued an academic course, and graduated from Emory College in 1850. He studied law under Georgia governor James Milton Smith,[1] and was admitted to the bar in 1852, commencing practice in Savannah.

Political service

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He was a member of the Georgia House of Representatives from 1861 to 1862 and was a presidential elector on the Democratic ticket in 1868. He was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. Senate and served from November 14, 1871, to March 3, 1877.[2] Norwood was the first Democrat from the South seated in the Senate after the Civil War.[3] He was a staunch critic of the Civil Rights Act of 1875.[4] He resumed the practice of law in Savannah, and was elected as a Representative to the Forty-ninth and Fiftieth U.S. Congresses, serving from March 4, 1885, to March 3, 1889.

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In 1889 he again resumed the practice of law, and was appointed judge of the city court of Savannah in 1896, serving twelve years.

In his last address before his retirement on December 31, 1907, Norwood called for the execution of Black men who had consensual sexual relationships with White women, accusing them of being violent and abusive. He also called for life imprisonment for White women who were involved, and subjecting Black people to chattel slavery.[5]

Death and legacy

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He returned to his country home, Harrock Hall, near Savannah, and died there in June 1913. Interment was in Laurel Grove Cemetery, Savannah. His posthumously published book A True Vindication of the South argued that the South had been justified in its fight against the North.

References

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  1. ^ The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, Volume XIII. New York: James T. White & Company. 1906. p. 474. Retrieved 23 July 2016.
  2. ^ Congressional Serial Set. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1903. pp. 392–395.
  3. ^ "Norwood, Thomas M. (Thomas Manson), 1830-1913". SNAC (Social Networks and Archival Context). Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  4. ^ Bank, Steven A. (January 1, 1995). "Anti-Miscegenation Laws and the Dilemma of Symmetry: The Understanding of Equality in the Civil Rights Act of 1875". 2 (1). Retrieved 23 July 2016. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. ^ "Dec. 31, 1907 | U.S. Senator Advocates Death Penalty for Black People in Interracial Relationships".

Works

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U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 2) from Georgia
November 14, 1871 – March 3, 1877
Served alongside: Joshua Hill, John B. Gordon 		Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Georgia's 1st congressional district
March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1889 		Succeeded by
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