CRITTENDEN
CRITTENDEN
the stale legislature. 1811-17, serving during the
last term as speaker. In 1817 he was elected to
the U.S. senate and served through the loth con-
gress, 1817-19, then resigned and was succeeded
by Richard M. Johnson. In 1819 he removed
to Frankfort in order to practise in the higher
courts. He afterward represented Franklin
county in the state legislature for several years
during the time of the court controversy, and
championed the old court. In 1827 he was U.S.
district attorney, and in 1829 was removed by
President Jackson. He was again elected to the
U.S. senate in 1835, and was re-elected in 1841,
but resigned wlien he was appointed bj- President
Harrison attorney -general in his cabinet, March
4, 1841. He resigned from the attorney -general-
ship upon the death of the President, and on
March 31, 1842, upon the resignation of Henry
Clay as U.S. senator, he became his successor by
appointment of Governor Letcher, and in 1843 was
elected for a full term. He resigned from the
senate in 1848 upon being elected governor of
Kentucky, and resigned the governorship in 1850
to accept the position of attorney -general in the
cabinet of President Fillmore. As attorney-
general he wrote an opinion on the constitution-
ality of the fugitive slave law. At the close of
the administration the legislature of Kentucky
again returned him to the U.S. senate and he
served, 1855-61. He opposed the repeal of the
Missouri compromise, took issue with the policy
of Presidents Pierce and Buchanan, and in 1860
favored the election of Bell and Everett. He
was then elected a representative from Kentucky
to the 37th congress. He was opposed to the
secession of the southern states and made strenu-
ous efforts to effect a compromise that v.-ould
avert civil war. In the 37th congress, July, 1861,
he offered a resolution that was adopted with
but two dissenting votes : declaring the war to be
waged only to defend and maintaiti the supremacy
of the constitution and preserve the Union and
that when this was accomplished the war should
cease. He opposed the admission of West Vir-
ginia as a separate state and the employment of
colored men as soldiers. His last speech in
congress was delivered when he was seventy-six
years old. The state of Kentucky erected a
monument to his memory. He received the de-
gree of LL.D. from Centre college, Ky., in
1860. See his Life by Mrs. Chapman Coleman.
He died near Frankfort, Ky., July 23, 1863.
CRITTENDEN, Robert, acting-governor of Arkansas Territory, was born near Versailles, Woodford county, Ky., Jan. 1, 1797: the yoimg- est son ofMaj. John Crittenden . He was given a liberal education, studied law and immigrated to Missouri Territory, settling in that portion set apart in 1818 as Arkansas Territory. He as-
sisted in the formation of a provisional govern-
ment, vested in a governor and three judges of
the superior court, preparatory to the regular
territorial government organized in 181^. He
was appointed by President Monroe the first sec-
retary of the territory, and in the protracted and
frequent absence of Governor Miller he was
acting governor. As such he convened the leg-
islature at Arkansas Post, the temporary capital,
Aug. 3, 1819. This legislature enacted the first
six laws framed for the government of the terri-
tory, and after promulgating the same adjourned
on the evening of the same day sine die. He was
sent to Washington, D.C., to secure special
legislation for the territory in 1820 and was its
secretary, 1819-29. He was one of the famous
" townsite committee" which purchased and
became the owner of the site of Little Rock and
made the place the state capital. He founded
the Advocate as a Whig organ in Little Rock. In
1827 his support of Robert C. Olden against
Henry W. Conway as territorial delegate to con-
gress led to a challenge from Delegate Conway.
Crittenden appealed to Conway to perform his
duty to the territory by meeting the obligations
of his office and if on his return from Washington
nothing short of what he then demanded would
satisfy him," he (Crittenden) would meet his
demands. On receiving this conciliatory note
Conway published Crittenden as a coward and
thus cut off all honorable accommodation but the
field. The duel was fought Oct. 29, 1827. Mr.
Crittenden was accompanied to the field by his
brother, John J. Crittenden, with whom he had
studied law and who had just been removed
from the office of U.S. district attorney by Presi-
dent Jackson, and Col. Ben Desha acted as his
second. Mr. Conway was mortally wounded and
Mr. Crittenden escaped uninjured. He was
prominently mentioned as an available candidate
for U.S. senator when the territory should be
admitted to statehood, but he died before that
event. He was married Oct. 1, 1822, to Ann
Innes Morris, near Frankfort, Ky., and they
had four children born in Little Rock, Ark. He
died at Vicksburg, Miss., Dec. 18, 1834.
CRITTENDEN, Thomas Leonidas, soldier, was born in Russellville, Ky., May 15, 1819; son of the Hon. John Jordan and Salhe O. (Lee) Crittenden; and brother of Maj.-Gen. George Bibb Crittenden, C.S.A. He attended Centre college but was not graduated; studied law with his father, and was admitted to the bar in 1840. In 1842 he was elected commonwealth at- torney for his district. He recruited a regiment for the Mexican war and was made its lieutenant- colonel, serving through the war, and being for a time a member of the staff of General Taylor, who was his cousin. He carried to the President
