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Ann Aibor, MI 48106 THE SECESSION CRISIS IN VIRGINIA: A Critical Study of Argument DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Alan Lawrence Golden, B.A. , M. A. ***** THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY 1990 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Merton L. Dillon is l ' t c '_ } ' \ Paul C. Bowers Advisor Department of History Bradley Chapin Copyright by Alan Lawrence Golden 1990 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express sincere appreciation to the members of my dissertation committee for all their assistance during this project. A special acknowledgment is extended to my advisor, Professor Merton L. Dillon, for his guidance and insight throughout my graduate program. Thanks also go to other members of the Ohio State history faculty who assisted me during my program, including Michael Les Benedict, Martha Garland, K. Austin Kerr, and Randolph Roth. Finally, I would like to express love and appreciation to my wife Kimberly, my parents, and other members of my family for their love, patience, and understanding. This degree certainly would not have been possible without the support of family and friends. ii VITA March 20, 1956.................... Born - Los Angeles, California 1978. .............................. B. A. , University of Richmond, Richmond, Virginia 1981................................M.A. , University of Richmond, Richmond, Virginia 1979-1984 ......................... Archivist, Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, Virginia 1984-1985 ......................... Research Archivist, Virginia State Library, Richmond, Virginia 1980-1985 ......................... Acting Curator, Edgar Allan Poe Museum, Richmond, Virginia 1985-1987 ......................... Academic Advisor, University College, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 1987-1989 ......................... Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of History, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 1989-1990 Adjunct instructor of history, University of Richmond, Virginia Commonwealth University, and J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, Richmond, Virginia Major Field of Study: History iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS............................................ ii VITA ....................................................... iii LIST OF T A B L E S .............................................. vi CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION......................................... 1 The Historical Setting of the Secession Crisis in Virginia .................................. 4 Historical Problem and Questions to be Addressed ..................................... 9 Status of Existing Literature.................. 15 Importance of Geography, Economics, and Demographics in Antebellum Virginia Politics....................................... 18 Materials Available for Investigation............ 25 Organizational Approach............................ 28 II. VIRGINIA’S DEVELOPING PERCEPTIONS OF ITS ROLE IN THE UNION IN 'THE EARLY NATIONAL AND ANTEBELLUM PERIODS, 1787-1859.................................. 34 Constitutional Debate in Virginia.................38 Jeffersonian Republicanism and the Emerging Concept of States’ Rights .................. 57 Virginians and Slavery ......................... 82 Response in Virginia to Events in the Period of Increasing Political Tensions, 1820- 1859............................................ 97 III. ELECTION OF I860.................................... 151 Crisis of 1859 .................................. 153 Nominations......................................... 160 Campaign in Virginia ........................... 184 Election in Virginia ........................... 192 Republican Victory .............................. 196 iv Table of Contents (continued) IV. VIRGINIA FACTIONS AND THE IMMEDIATE RESPONSE TO THE ELECTION OF LINCOLN ............................. 208 Factions........................................... 210 Secession of South Carolina .................. 225 Crittenden Compromise ......................... 231 V. THE CRISIS OF 1861 AND THE VIRGINIA VOTE FOR SECESSION ............................................. 243 Early Attempts at Moderation in the Virginia Legislature.................................... 244 Election of Convention Delegates.................248 Formation of the Confederate States of America.........................................257 Washington Peace Conference .................. 262 Inauguration of the Republican Administration .............................. 266 Secession of Virginia ......................... 276 VI. CONCLUSION.................................... 311 A P P E N D I X .......................................................337 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................ 352 v LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Virginia County Vote In 1860................... 338 2. Delegate Vote on Secession........................ 342 3. Voting and County Geographic Designation. 347 vi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Few topics in American history have been analysed as often or with as much vigor and partiality as has the antebellum sectional crisis. From the period immediately following the Civil War to the present, major shifts have occurred in the historiography of the pre-war period.1 In the decade preceding the centennial observance of the Civil War, leading American historians engaged in a particularly lively debate on the present condition and future prospects of the study of the antebellum period. In I960, David Donald declared that historians had reached an impasse in the interpretation of the causes of the Civil War.2 Kenneth Stampp disagreed, claiming that the century of inquiry into the sectional conflict had "gradually enlarged our knowledge and deepened our understanding of our greatest national crisis.” Stampp saw little hope in historians arriving at consensus agreement on the causes of the Civil War, but he believed the constant reevaluation of the sources added to the already healthy and vital historiographical discussion of the subject.3 David Potter agreed with Stampp. In an essay first published in 1961, Patter claimed that "the last three decades have witnessed considerable advances in the historical understanding of many of the developments which preceded the Civil War."* Over a decade later, Eric Foner concurred with the assessments of Stampp and Potter. In a paper delivered before the Organization of American Historians in 1972, Foner stressed that new understandings of antebellum politics, race relations, and slavery had emerged in the 1960s and early 1970s. He also noted that changes in methodology had allowed historians to focus more directly on issues and societal relationships that previously had been ignored.3 In the years following Foner’s essay, historians using new methods and new interpretations of the political, ideological, and social aspects of this crisis have presented an even more refined picture of the secession of the South. Socialist and Marxist historians have revived economic interpretations, placing their theories within the social and cultural context of the plantation economy. Also, the prominent role of the black slaves in the southern system continues to be addressed. In the past decade, many historians also have revived the comprehensive political analysis of the period. Quantitative methodology has allowed historians to delve into new sources and reevaluate previously studied materials. Concepts such as republican ideology also have become a major part of the evolving interpretation of the southern secession movement. The study of individuals and Issues once thought to have exercised only a passive or subordinate role in antebellum American society is now viewed as essential to the understanding