George F. Strother | |
|---|---|
| Member of theVirginia House of Delegates from theCulpeper district | |
| In office December 1, 1806 – December 3, 1809 Serving with John Roberts (Culpeper) | |
| Preceded by | Aylett Hawes |
| Succeeded by | Moses Green |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromVirginia's10th district | |
| In office March 4, 1817 – February 10, 1820 | |
| Preceded by | Aylett Hawes |
| Succeeded by | Thomas L. Moore |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1783 (1783) |
| Died | November 28, 1840(1840-11-28) (aged 56–57) |
| Resting place | Bellefontaine Cemetery |
| Party | Democratic-Republican |
| Spouse | Sara Green Williams |
| Alma mater | College of William and Mary |
| Profession | Lawyer, planter, military officer, politician |
George French Strother (1783 – November 28, 1840) was a nineteenth-century politician, lawyer and slaveowner inVirginia andMissouri.[1]
Born inStevensburg, Virginia, to prominentCulpeper County attorneyFrench Strother (1739–1800) and his wife the former Lucy Coleman, George Strother attended theCollege of William and Mary.
After studying law, George Strother too was admitted to the bar, and commenced practice inCulpeper County, Virginia. He inherited property (including slaves) when his father died in 1799. In the 1810 federal census, he owned 7 slaves in Culpeper County, and 23 slaves in Falmouth in Stafford County, Virginia, from here his father had moved to Culpeper County but where the family continued to retain property.
George Strother won what once had been his father's seat in theVirginia House of Delegates representing Culpeper County alongsideJohn Roberts (Culpeper) for three single-year terms, 1806–1809. In 1816, the year voters elected fellow VirginianJames Monroe president, George Strother was elected to theUnited States House of Representatives as aDemocratic-Republican, where he served from 1817 to 1820. He succeeded fellow Democratic RepublicanAylett Hawes, who retired and returned to his medical practice (and whom he had succeeded in the Virginia House of Delegates in 1806). Strother won re-election in 1818 but resigned in February 1820, and his seat lay vacant until fellow Democratic RepublicanThomas L. Moore was elected in November.
After theMissouri Compromise led to Missouri's admission as a slave state, Strother moved toSt. Louis, Missouri, where Strother became receiver of public money.[2]
Strother practiced law in St. Louis for many years. A nephew with the same name caused a sensation by stabbing a fellow lawyer from Virginia named Horatio Cozens to death in the courthouse over a political dispute on behalf of this George Strother. The murderer then fled to Mexico, where he reportedly died.[3]
George French Strother married Sarah Green Williams, daughter of Gen. James Williams, of "Soldier's Rest" inOrange County, Virginia. The couple had two children: Sarah Williams Strother (1810–1885),James French Strother (1811–1860) (and grandfather of another namedJames French Strother who served in Virginia's Constitutional Convention of 1850). After Sarah died, Strother married Theodosia, daughter of John Hunt, ofLexington, Kentucky, and had two more children, Sallie and John Hunt Strother (1812–1863).[4]
George Strother died on November 28, 1840. He was originally interred in Christ Church Cemetery and in 1860 was reinterred inBellefontaine Cemetery.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromVirginia's 10th congressional district March 4, 1817 – February 10, 1820 | Succeeded by |
 | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
