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Historical records matching James Madison Wells
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About James Madison Wells
James Madison Wells became Governor upon the resignation of Governor Hahn who left office to serve in the U. S. Senate. As Hahn's Lieutenant Governor, Well's pro- Union stance was no secret, his opposition to black civil rights was, however, less well known
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As Governor, Wells took the side of those who wanted a mild Reconstruction: he supported President Andrew Johnson's plan of allowing quick Reconstruction led by former Confederates and he appointed ex-Confederates to office. In his first address to the legislature, he urged the end of public education and pushed for taxes from only blacks to pay for freedmen's schools.
In the second year of his term, Wells switched loyalties. He began supporting the policies of Radical Reconstruction which gave blacks the right to vote and urged the legislature to ratify the 14th Amendment and to fund black schools.
General Philip H. Sheridan, the head of the military district containing Louisiana, removed Wells from office. The districts had been created by the Military Reconstruction Act of 1867 and gave the Army power over civil authority. Sheridan did not trust Wells' unusual shift of allegiance.
The former governor returned home to Rapides Parish. He later held additional state offices, including Surveyor of Customs for the Port of New Orleans. He died in Lecompte in 1899.
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James Madison Wells's Timeline
| 1808 |
January 8, 1808
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Rapides, LA, United States
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| 1836 |
1836
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| 1838 |
August 9, 1838
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| 1840 |
1840
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| 1841 |
1841
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| 1842 |
1842
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| 1844 |
July 1844
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| 1846 |
1846
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| 1850 |
1850
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| 1851 |
1851
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