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Francis Wade Hughes

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Francis Wade Hughes
Attorney General of Pennsylvania
In office
March 14, 1853 – January 17, 1855
Preceded byJames Campbell
Succeeded byThomas E. Franklin
Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
In office
January 21, 1852 – March 14, 1853
Preceded byAlexander L. Russell
Succeeded byCharles Alexander Black
Personal details
Born(1817-08-20)August 20, 1817
Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
DiedOctober 22, 1885(1885-10-22) (aged 68)
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseElizabeth Silliman
OccupationLawyer, politician

Francis Wade Hughes (August 10, 1817 – October 20, 1885) was a Pennsylvania lawyer and politician. In the 1850s, he served as state Secretary of the Commonwealth and as Attorney General. Although pro-Union, he was tarred as a secessionist "traitor" in the press during the 1862 elections, ending his political career. During the 1870s, he was the chief prosecutor in the Molly Maguires trials.

Life and career

Hughes was born the fifth and youngest child of John Hughes and Hannah Bartholomew. He studied law in Pottsville, Schuylkill County and Philadelphia. He was admitted to the bar of Schuylkill County in 1837.[1] He was appointed Deputy Attorney General[Note 1] of the county in 1839. He would resign three times and be reappointed over the next eleven years.[2]

He married Sarah Silliman, of Pottsville, in 1839.[2]

Hughes was elected to the state Senate, representing his county, in 1843, resigning after one year. In 1852 he was appointed Secretary of the Commonwealth, which he resigned in 1853 to become Attorney General.

As chairman of the 1862 Democratic State Committee, Hughes was singled out for vilification. His family ties in the Confederacy were played up, and worse, a draft resolution he authored (but never introduced) for the 1860 convention, suggesting Pennsylvania might secede, was attacked. Hughes was forced to resign, and never returned to politics.[3][4][5]

In 1876 he was the chief prosecutor in the Molly Maguires cases. He had previously never prosecuted homicide cases and frequently defended with success those facing capital punishment.[2]

Notes

  1. ^ Today called District Attorney.

References

Citations

  1. ^ Roberts 1904, p. 286.
  2. ^ a b c Roberts 1904, p. 287.
  3. ^ Shankman 1971.
  4. ^ Broadwater 2008.
  5. ^ Bulik 2014.

Bibliography

  • Broadwater, Robert P. (2008). Did Lincoln and the Republican Party Create the Civil War?: An Argument. McFarland. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Bulik, Mark (2014). The Sons of Molly Maguire: The Irish Roots of America's First Labor War. Oxford University Press. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Roberts, Ellwood (1904). Biographical Annals of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Vol. 1. Montgomery County: T. S. Benham. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Shankman, Arnold (July 1971). "Francis W. Hughes and the 1862 Pennsylvania Election". The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography. 95 (3): 383–393. JSTOR 20090572. {{cite journal}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Political offices
Preceded by Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
1852–1853 		Succeeded by
Legal offices
Preceded by Attorney General of Pennsylvania
1853–1856 		Succeeded by
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