Abstract
William McKindree Gwin (1805-85), originally a political protege of Andrew Jackson, was a noted Southern moderate in the United States Senate during the 1850s. Having served in the House as a representative from Mississippi and then lost a bid for the Senate to Jefferson Davis in the 1840s, he migrated to California, quickly becoming one of its first senators and its most influential Democratic politician. In Congress, true to his Jacksonian roots, Gwin supported a strong national government and led efforts for a transcontinental railroad against the opposition of Southern sectionalists. Also committed to strict party discipline, he had risen to head of the Democratic caucus during Buchanan's administration. Lincoln's election placed southern moderates like Gwin in an untenable position. For a time he carried secret messages between Seward and Jefferson Davis (both old friends of his) in a futile effort to prevent the outbreak of war. Once war began, he headed South to look after the plantation he still owned (which would be totally destroyed). He then ran the Union blockade to join Southern sympathizers in Paris. When the war turned decisively against the South, he went to Mexico where he tried unsuccessfully to arrange a place for Confederate refugees to colonize. After the war he was briefly arrested, but released upon the intervention of Northern friends.
Journal Title
Iowa Journal of Communication
Volume
25
Issue
3
First Page
53
Last Page
54
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Quinn, Arthur
(1993)
"for William Gwin,"
Iowa Journal of Communication: Vol. 25:
No.
3, Article 18.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/ijc/vol25/iss3/18
Copyright
©1993 Iowa Communication Association
