Profile of the Day: Jefferson Davis

Jefferson Davis

Do you have ancestors who fought in the American Civil War? On this day in 1861, Jefferson Davis was elected president of the Confederacy.

Davis was born on June 3, 1808 in Christian County, Kentucky. He married twice, losing his first wife Sara Knox Taylor to malaria only three months into their marriage. Sara was the daughter of his commanding officer, Zachary Taylor, who would later become the 12th President of the United States. In 1845, he married his second wife, Varina Banks Howell, and together had six children.

After a distinguished military career, Davis served as U.S. Senator and Secretary of War under President Franklin Pierce. A staunch supporter of slavery and state sovereignty, Davis believed each state had an unquestionable right to secede from the Union. He ran for president of the Confederate States without any opposition; the election merely confirmed the decision made by the Confederate Congress months earlier. He remained president until the Confederate was dissolved in 1865.

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