Who was Edward Bates? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Died At Age: 75

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Julia Coalter

father: Thomas

mother: Caroline Bates

American Men American Lawyers & Judges

Died on: March 25, 1869

U.S. State: Virginia

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Childhood & Early Life

He was born as the twelfth child of Thomas and Caroline Bates in Goochland County, Virginia. Both of his parents were Quakers.

His father died when he was a young boy but fortunately he had several elder siblings who took good care of him. He was sent to Charlotte Academy, of St. Mary's County in 1806.

He served in the army during the War of 1812 though his mother did not approve of her son taking up arms. So he decided to study law as advised by his brother who was an attorney.

He moved to St. Louis and studied law with Rufus Easton who was the Judge of the Louisiana Territory and was admitted to the Bar during the winter of 1816-17.

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Career

Bates joined Easton as a partner upon his admission to the bar. The partners organized the James Ferry in 1817 which ran from St. Charles to Alton.

He also began practicing privately and entered politics in 1820 when he was elected as a member of Missouri’s constitutional convention. The same year he also became Missouri’s Attorney General.

He was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 1822 where he served till 1824. His political aspirations were growing by the day and he was delighted when he was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1827 for one term.

His political career flourished over the 1830s. In 1831, he was elected to the State Senate where he remained till 1835 before joining the Missouri House from 1835.

During the 1840s he became a prominent member of the Whig Party. His political philosophy was very similar to that of Henry Clay.

At this time Bates was a slaveholder but he was highly influenced by the case of Polly Berry, a freed slave who enlisted his support to free her daughter who was still illegally retained by her so-called owners.

During the Whig National Convention in 1852, he was considered for nomination as vice-president but lost to William Graham. The Whig Party broke up in the 1850s.

Bates became a Republican and was considered a candidate for the presidential nomination in 1860. However when he realized that he might not win, he began supporting another candidate, Abraham Lincoln who eventually became the president.

Lincoln on becoming the president appointed Bates as the United States Attorney General in 1861. He served in this post till 1864. He played an important role in carrying out Lincoln’s earlier war policies. He supported the president in the arbitrary arrest of southern sympathizers and rebellious northerners.

However, Bates did not always support Lincoln’s policies and was vocal in voicing his dissent. As the president began proposing more radical policies, Bates’ position suffered.

Even though he himself had freed his slaves, he did not believe in the president’s Emancipation Proclamation that would free black slaves in several states. Nor was Bates in support of the recruitment of blacks into the Union Army.

His dissatisfaction with the Lincoln government reached a new high when the president nominated Salmon Chase to be Chief Justice in 1864, a post which Bates wanted. Thus Bates resigned.

After his resignation he protested against the adoption of the Missouri constitution of 1865 and wrote several essays arguing against the constitution. But the constitution was ultimately ratified and he resigned from active politics.

Major Works

Edward Bates was a brilliant lawyer who served as the United States Attorney General under President Abraham Lincoln from 1861 to 1864. He played a key role in carrying out the president’s war policies and was very vocal in voicing his opinions even if they were different from the president’s.

Personal Life & Legacy

He married Julia Coalter, the daughter of David Coalter, in 1823. The couple had 17 children and Bates took pride in his large family. He was a loving husband and father—a devoted family man.

He died in 1869.

Edward Bates Biography