Archibald Atkinson
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromVirginia's1st district
In office March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1849
Preceded by	Francis Mallory
Succeeded by	John Millson
Member of theVirginia Senate fromIsle of Wight,Prince George,Southampton,Surry andSussex Counties
In office 1839–1843
Preceded by	Joel Holleman
Succeeded by	William Spark
Member of theVirginia House of Delegates from Isle of Wight County
In office 1828–1830
Preceded by	John Chapman
Succeeded by	James Jordon
In office 1815–1816 Alongside John Lawrence
Personal details
Born	(1792-09-15)September 15, 1792 Isle of Wight County, Virginia
Died	January 7, 1872(1872-01-07) (aged 79) Smithfield, Virginia
Resting place	Old St. Luke's Church
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	College of William and Mary
Profession	lawyer,legislator
Military service
Allegiance	United States of America
Battles/wars	War of 1812

Archibald Atkinson (September 15, 1792 – January 7, 1872) was an American lawyer and slave owner^[1] who served three terms as aU.S. Representative fromVirginia from 1843 to 1849. He was a veteran of theWar of 1812.^[2]

Born in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, Atkinson received a liberal education.

He attended the law department of theCollege of William & Mary (nowWilliam & Mary Law School),Williamsburg, Virginia.^[2]

He served during the War of 1812 and was lateradmitted to the bar and commenced practice in Smithfield, Virginia.

He was a member of theVirginia House of Delegates from 1815 to 1817 and from 1828 to 1831, and served in theVirginia Senate from 1839 to 1843.

Atkinson was elected as aDemocrat to theTwenty-eighth,Twenty-ninth, andThirtieth Congresses (March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1849). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1848 to theThirty-first Congress.

In a valedictory speech to Congress in 1849, he described slavery as a "positive moral good" for those enslaved, claimed that the "well-fed, well-clad, contented negro of Virginia asks not your sympathy for him," and falsely claimed that slaves would rise up against abolitionists.^[3][4]

He served asprosecuting attorney for Isle of Wight County.

He died in Smithfield, Virginia, on January 7, 1872.^[4] He was interred in the graveyard ofOld St. Luke's Church, four miles southeast of Smithfield.

• 1841; Atkinson lost his first election for the U.S. House of Representatives; he was defeated by Whig Francis Mallory, winning only 11.26% of the vote.
• 1843; Atkinson was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives with 50.07% of the vote, defeating Whig James E. Langhorne.
• 1845; Atkinson was re-elected with 55.9% of the vote, defeating Whig R.H. Whitfield.
• 1847; Atkinson was re-elected with 50.82% of the vote, defeating Whig Samuel Watts.

• United States Congress."Archibald Atkinson (id: A000328)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.

 This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiographical Directory of the United States Congress.Federal government of the United States.

• 1792 births
• 1872 deaths
• Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates
• Democratic Party Virginia state senators
• William & Mary Law School alumni
• County and city commonwealth's attorneys in Virginia
• People from Isle of Wight County, Virginia
• American military personnel of the War of 1812
• Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia
• 19th-century American lawyers
• 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives
• 19th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from May 2025
• Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress