D. Wyatt Aiken

David Wyatt Aiken
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromSouth Carolina's3rddistrict
In office March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1887
Preceded by	Solomon L. Hoge
Succeeded by	James S. Cothran
Member of theSouth Carolina House of RepresentativesfromAbbeville District
In office November 28, 1864 – December 21, 1866
Personal details
Born	(1828-03-17)March 17, 1828 Winnsboro, South Carolina,US
Died	April 6, 1887(1887-04-06)(aged 59) Cokesbury, South Carolina,US
Political party	Democratic
Profession	journalist,farmer
Military service
Allegiance	Confederate States of America
Branch/service	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861–64
Rank	Colonel
Commands	7th South Carolina Infantry
Battles/wars	American Civil War -Peninsula Campaign -Northern Virginia Campaign -Battle of Antietam -Gettysburg Campaign

David Wyatt Aiken(March 17, 1828 – April 6, 1887) was a slave owner,Confederatearmy officer during theAmerican Civil Warand areconstruction erafive-termUnited States CongressmanfromSouth Carolina.

Biography

Early life

Aiken was born inWinnsboro, South Carolina,and received his early education under private tutors. He attended theMount Zion Institutein Winnsboro and graduated fromSouth Carolina CollegeinColumbiain 1849. He taught college for two years before marrying Mattie Gaillard in 1852 and engaging in agricultural pursuits, owning aplantationand traveling extensively inEuropeand throughout the United States, where he spoke in defense of slavery to large crowds.He became the editor of the WinnsboroNews and Herald,and was married a second time to Miss Smith ofAbbeville,where Aiken settled and continued to farm. In 1855, Aiken became a founding member of the State Agricultural Society.

He was a slave owner, and owned the Smith family slave plantation after marrying Smith, which held about 40 slaves.

Civil War, Reconstruction

In 1858 Aiken attended a political convention in Mobile, Alabama, and began speaking publicly in favor of secession.With South Carolina'ssecessionand the advent of the Civil War, Aiken enlisted in the Confederate Army as a private in the 7th South Carolina Infantry. He was later appointed adjutant of the regiment and in 1862 was elected itscolonel.He led it in thePeninsulaandNorthern Virginia Campaigns.He was severely wounded by a shot through his lungs at theBattle of Antietamin September 1862.After his lengthy recovery, he commanded his regiment in theGettysburg CampaigninJoseph B. Kershaw'sbrigade,seeing action near the Peach Orchard in theBattle of Gettysburg.However, lingering effects of his wound soon forced Aiken to administrative duty inMacon, Georgiafor a year, before he resigned from the Confederate army in mid-1864 and returned home.

He was a member of the State house of representatives from 1864–66 and served as secretary and treasurer of theState Agricultural and Mechanical Society of South Carolinain 1869.Aiken was a prominent figure in theReconstruction-era Democratic party, and a leader in efforts to suppress the voting rights of recently emancipated slaves, and an advocate of "white man's government."He publicly called for the assassination of a black state legislator,Benjamin F. Randolph,saying “never to suffer this man Randolph to come into your midst; if he does, give him four feet by six.”On October 16, 1868, Randolph was assassinated by three men in broad daylight. Aiken was detained by state authorities on suspicion of being an accessory-before-the-fact, and freed on $5,000 bond. No one was ever brought to trial for Randolph's assassination.

Grange activist, magazine publisher

In 1872, Aiken was an activist on behalf ofThe National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry,more commonly known as the Grange, organizing 76 local chapters across South Carolina. Aiken was a member of the executive committee of theNational Grangefrom 1873–85, served as its chairman in 1875, and was president of the South Carolina Grange from 1875–1877. Starting in 1869, Aiken was a correspondent ofThe Rural Carolinian,a magazine for southern planters and farmers.He eventually became editor and owner and held those positions until 1877.

Congressional service, death

Aiken served as a delegate to theDemocratic National ConventionatSt. Louisin 1876, and was elected as aDemocratto theForty-fifthand to the four succeeding Congresses (serving from 1877 until 1887). He was chairman of the Committee on Education in theForty-eighthandForty-ninth Congresses.With his health declining, Aiken became an invalid during his last term in office and was not a candidate for renomination in 1886.

Aiken died inCokesbury, South Carolina.

His son,Wyatt Aiken,also served in Congress and a first cousin,William Aiken, Jr.,became a Congressman andGovernor of South Carolina.

External links

• United States Congress."D. Wyatt Aiken (id: A000061)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• David Wyatt Aiken Papersat South Carolina Digital Library

This article incorporatespublic domain materialfrom theBiographical Directory of the United States Congress