Joseph E. Brown of Georgia

Book excerpt: Joseph Brown was a pivotal figure in southern history and a prototype of a new breed of southern politician in the mid-nineteenth century-the hill country newcomer who was considered to represent the “common man.” As governor of Georgia from 1857 to 1865, Brown enthusiastically supported the Confederacy in the early years of the war, though he refused to sacrifice what he considered states’ rights to the interest of a Confederate victory. Brown was constantly at odds with Jefferson Davis concerning Georgia’s supply of Confederate troops and was openly hostile, to the .point of urging Davis’ removal over the matters of conscription and the suspension of habeas corpus. When defeat came for the South, Brown accepted the collapse of the old economic order as quickly as he did the loss of slavery and states’ rights. He advocated a new South and amassed a fortune in the development of real estate, mining, and railroads. He turned Republican and promoted congressional Reconstruction measures, temporarily losing his influence in Georgia. But in 1871 he rejoined the Democratic party and served in the United States Senate from 1880 to 1891. Here is the first full-scale biography of a man of meager education and limited political experience who worked his way from the North Georgia mountains to the positions of governor and United States senator. Drawing on previously unavailable documents, Parks captures the mood of Georgia as well as the personality of this astute and controversial politician.