Felix Grundy | |
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| 13thUnited States Attorney General | |
| In office July 5, 1838 – December 14, 1839 | |
| President | Martin Van Buren |
| Preceded by | Benjamin F. Butler |
| Succeeded by | Henry D. Gilpin |
| United States Senator fromTennessee | |
| In office December 14, 1839 – December 19, 1840 | |
| Preceded by | Ephraim H. Foster |
| Succeeded by | Alfred O. P. Nicholson |
| In office October 19, 1829 – July 4, 1838 | |
| Preceded by | John Eaton |
| Succeeded by | Ephraim H. Foster |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's5th district | |
| In office March 4, 1813 – July 19, 1814 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Newton Cannon |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's3rd district | |
| In office March 4, 1811 – March 3, 1813 | |
| Preceded by | Pleasant Moorman Miller |
| Succeeded by | Thomas K. Harris |
| Chief Justice of theKentucky Court of Appeals | |
| In office 1807–1808 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Todd |
| Succeeded by | Ninian Edwards |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1777-09-11)September 11, 1777 Berkeley County, Virginia, U.S.(nowWest Virginia) |
| Died | December 19, 1840(1840-12-19) (aged 63) Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic-Republican(Before 1825) Democratic(1825–1840) |
| Spouse | Ann Phillips Rodgers |
| Relatives | Carrie Winder McGavock (granddaughter) |
| Signature |  |
Felix Grundy (September 11, 1777 – December 19, 1840) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 13thUnited States Attorney General. He also had served several terms as acongressman and as aU.S. senator fromTennessee. He was known for his success as a criminal lawyer who attracted crowds when he served on the defense.
Born in Berkeley County, Virginia (nowBerkeley County, West Virginia), Grundy moved with his parents toBrownsville, Pennsylvania, and thenKentucky. He was educated at home and at theBardstown Academy inBardstown, Kentucky.[1] Heread law as an apprentice with an established firm, was admitted to the Kentuckybar in 1799. That year he started practice inSpringfield, Kentucky.
In 1799, he was chosen to representWashington County at the convention that drafted the secondKentucky Constitution.[1] From 1800 to 1802, he represented Washington County in theKentucky House of Representatives.[1] He moved toNelson County, and was elected to represent it in the Kentucky House for one term (1804–1806).[1]
On December 10, 1806, he was commissioned an associate justice of theKentucky Court of Appeals.[1] Grundy was elevated to Chief Justice of the court on April 11, 1807.[1]
Later that year, he resigned and moved toNashville, Tennessee, where he again took up the practice of law.[1] Grundy was opposed to the rising Kentucky politician (and later founder of theWhig Party),Henry Clay, whose Bluegrass interests clashed with Grundy's. The former chief justice left Kentucky in part because of Clay's growing presence in the state.[2] In addition, Nashville was growing rapidly as the chief city in the Middle District of Tennessee. While soon renowned as a criminal lawyer in Tennessee, Grundy maintained his political ambition.[3]
Grundy was elected as aDemocratic-Republican to the12th and13th Congresses and served from March 4, 1811, until his resignation in July 1814.[4]
He was elected and served as a member of theTennessee House of Representatives from 1819 to 1825. In 1820 he was a commissioner to settle the boundary line (state line) betweenTennessee and Kentucky.
He was elected as aJacksonian in 1829 to theUnited States Senate to fill the vacancy in the term ending March 4, 1833, caused by the resignation ofJohn H. Eaton to join theCabinet ofPresidentAndrew Jackson. Reelected in 1832, Grundy served from October 19, 1829, to July 4, 1838, when he resigned to accept a Cabinet position. During his period in Congress, Grundy served as chairman of theCommittee on Post Offices and Post Roads (21st through24th Congresses),U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary (24th and25th Congresses).
Grundy was appointed asAttorney General of the United States by PresidentMartin Van Buren in July 1838. He resigned the post in December 1839, having been elected as aDemocrat to the United States Senate on November 19, 1839, to fill the vacancy in the term commencing March 4, 1839, caused by the resignation ofEphraim Foster.
He resolved the question of whether he was eligible to be elected as Senator while holding the office of Attorney General by resigning on December 14, 1839. He was reelected by the Tennessee legislature to the Senate the same day, serving from December 14, 1839, until his death inNashville, a little over a year later. During this stint in the US Senate, Grundy served as chairman of theU.S. Senate Committee on Revolutionary Claims in the26th Congress.
Grundy was buried atNashville City Cemetery inNashville, Tennessee. After his death, four American counties were named in his honor. The four counties are located inIllinois,Iowa,Missouri andTennessee.
BothGrundy Center, Iowa, and its location ofGrundy County, Iowa are also named in his honor. Grundy Center's annual festival, called "Felix Grundy Days", are held each July. This marks the start to the annual Grundy County Fair, located in Grundy Center.
Grundy was a mentor to futurePresidentJames K. Polk. Polk purchased Grundy's home in Nashville called "Grundy Place" and changed the name to "Polk Place". He lived and died there after his presidency. It was demolished in 1901.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's 3rd congressional district 1811-1813 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by District created | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's 5th congressional district 1813-1814 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 1) from Tennessee 1829–1838 Served alongside:Hugh L. White | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 1) from Tennessee 1839–1840 Served alongside:Hugh L. White,Alexander O. Anderson | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chairman of theSenate Judiciary Committee 1836–1838 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Attorney General Served under:Martin Van Buren 1838–1840 | Succeeded by |
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| Post Office and Civil Service (1947–1977) | ||
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