Ridgley C. Powers Explained

Ridgley C. Powers
Order1:29th Governor of Mississippi
Lieutenant1:Alexander K. Davis
Term Start1:November 30, 1871
Term End1:January 4, 1874
Predecessor1:James L. Alcorn
Successor1:Adelbert Ames
Order2:7th Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi
Governor2:James L. Alcorn
Term Start2:1870
Term End2:1871
Predecessor2:Office re-created
Successor2:Alexander K. Davis
Birth Name:Ridgley Ceylon Powers
Birth Date:December 24, 1836
Birth Place:Mecca, Ohio
Death Place:Los Angeles, California
Party:Republican
Alma Mater:University of Michigan
Union College

Ridgley Ceylon Powers (December 24, 1836 – November 11, 1912) was a U.S. Army officer in the American Civil War who served as Mississippi's lieutenant governor in 1870 before becoming governor from 1871 to 1874.[1] He was from Ohio and served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He succeeded James L. Alcorn as governor when Alcorn resigned to become a U.S. senator.

Background

He was born in Mecca, Ohio, on Christmas Eve. He graduated from the University of Michigan and completed post-graduate work at Union College in Schenectady, New York, in 1862.

Wartime participation

In the second year of the American Civil War, Powers enlisted into the United States Army as a private. He became a second lieutenant and later a captain in the 125th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He served at the Third Battle of Chattanooga and in the Atlanta Campaign before returning with his regiment to Tennessee for much of the remainder of the war. He ended his military service as a colonel upon the end of the conflict.

Governorship

In 1865, the Ohioan settled in Noxubee County, Mississippi as a cotton planter, later becoming sheriff. During Reconstruction, Powers was elected the seventh lieutenant governor and began his term in 1870. Governor James L. Alcorn resigned the following year to accept a U.S. Senate seat, thereby making Powers the acting governor; he finished the unexpired term ending in 1874.

Death

Powers died in Los Angeles, California in 1912.

Notes and References

  1. http://mshistorynow.mdah.state.ms.us/articles/205/index.php?s=extra&id=132 Ridgely Ceylon Powers