Randall L. Gibson

Randall L. Gibson
United States Senator fromLouisiana
In office March 4, 1883 – December 15, 1892
Preceded by	William P. Kellogg
Succeeded by	Donelson Caffery
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromLouisiana's1stdistrict
In office March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1883
Preceded by	Effingham Lawrence
Succeeded by	Carleton Hunt
Personal details
Born	(1832-09-10)September 10, 1832 Versailles,Kentucky
Died	December 15, 1892(1892-12-15)(aged 60) Hot Springs,Arkansas
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	Yale University
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	Confederate States of America
Branch/service	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861–1865
Rank	Brigadier General
Battles/wars	American Civil War

Randall Lee Gibson(September 10, 1832 – December 15, 1892) was an attorney and politician, elected as amember of the House of RepresentativesandU.S. SenatorfromLouisiana.He served as abrigadier generalin theConfederate States Army.Later he was a regent of theSmithsonian Institution,and a president of the board of administrators ofTulane University.

Early life

Gibson was born in 1832 at "Spring Hill",Versailles, Kentucky,the son of Tobias Gibson, aplanterand slaveholder. His mother was from a slaveholding family inLe xing ton, Kentucky.

His paternal great-grandfather wasGideon Gibson Jr.,who was likely born in the colony of South Carolina in 1731. His great-great-grandfather, Gideon Gibson, was afree man of colorwho was married to a white woman, and had owned land and a few slaves in Virginia (likely where he was born) and North Carolina, before migrating with other settlers to South Carolina in the 1730s. The government was worried that he might provoke a slave revolt and the colonial governor had an interview with him. Learning about his life, the governor declared him a free man with all privileges, and granted him land.

Gibson's father moved his family to Louisiana when Randall was a child, where the youth was educated in local academies. He went to college in the North, graduating fromYale Universityin 1853, where he was a member of theSkull and Bonessociety. He returned to Louisiana to study for his bachelor of laws (LL.B) from the University of Louisiana Law School, laterTulane University.

Civil War

c. 1860

Soon after the Louisiana'ssecessionfrom theUnion,Gibson became an aide to Gov.Thomas O. Moore.On May 8, 1861, he left the capital to join the 1st Louisiana Artillery as a captain.

On August 13, 1861, he was commissioned ascolonelof the 13th Louisiana Infantry.Gibson fought at theBattle of Shilohand subsequent actions. With theArmy of the Mississippi,he took part in the 1862Kentucky Campaignand theBattle of Chickamauga.After being promoted to brigadier general (special) on January 11, 1864, he fought in theAtlanta Campaignand theFranklin-Nashville Campaign;he next was assigned to the defense ofMobile, Alabama.He inspired his troops to holdSpanish Fort,which was undersiege,until the last moment, after which they escaped at night on April 8, 1865. Gibson was captured at Cuba Station, Alabama on May 8, 1865 and paroled atMeridian, Mississippion May 14, 1865.He was pardoned on September 25, 1866.

Postbellum career

In 1874, Gibson was elected as aDemocratin theUnited States House of Representatives,being re-elected and serving from March 4, 1875, until March 3, 1883.He promoted the creation of the United States House Committee on the Mississippi Levees on December 10, 1875, to investigate the state of Mississippi levees and gain federal support for their building and repair, issues he persuaded his fellows were in the national interest because of the importance of the Mississippi, its trade, and the region's agriculture. The committee's name was changed to theLevees and Improvements of the Mississippi Riveron November 7, 1877.

In 1882, Gibson was elected by the Louisiana state legislature (as was the procedure at the time) asUnited States Senator,serving from March 4, 1883, until his death on December 15, 1892.

According to historianDaniel J. SharfsteininThe Invisible Line: Three American Families and the Secret Journey From Black to White(2011), during these years a political opponent challenged Gibson's status as a white man, based on records. Gibson investigated but learned only that his ancestors were property owners, which was "enough to satisfy most of Gibson's contemporaries."

"Such status," Sharfstein explains, "could not mean anything but whiteness.... As much as racial purity mattered to white Southerners, they had tocircle the wagonsaround Randall Gibson. If someone of his position could not be secure in his race, then no one was safe. "

Sharfstein claims that Gibson's paternal line went back to freed Africanslavesin colonial Virginia.

Randall Gibson died as a United States senator while inHot Springs, Arkansas.His body was returned to Kentucky, where he was buried atLe xing ton Cemeteryin Le xing ton, Kentucky.He was a member ofThe Boston Clubof New Orleans.

In memoriam

Gibson Hallon the campus ofTulane Universityis named for Senator Gibson, who was instrumental after the war in helping fund and continue the public University of Louisiana as the privateTulane University of Louisiana.The town of Tigerville inTerrebonne Parishwas renamedGibson, Louisianain his honor.

See also

• List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)
• List of United States Congress members who died in office (1790–1899)

References

• Sifakis, Stewart.Who Was Who in the Civil War.New York: Facts On File, 1988.ISBN978-0-8160-1055-4.
• Warner, Ezra J.Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959.ISBN978-0-8071-0823-9.

Further reading

• McBride, Mary Gorton (2007).Randall Lee Gibson of Louisiana.Baton Rouge: LSU Press.ISBN9780807132340.
• Sharfstein, Daniel L.The Invisible Line: Three American Families and the Secret Journey From Black to White,New York: Penguin Press, 2011

External links

• Congressional biography
• Paul Heinegg,Free African Americans in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland and Delaware,1995-2006
• Randall L. GibsonatFind a Grave