James Wilson Grimes | |
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| United States Senator fromIowa | |
| In office March 4, 1859 – December 6, 1869 | |
| Preceded by | George Wallace Jones |
| Succeeded by | James B. Howell |
| 3rd Governor of Iowa | |
| In office December 9, 1854 – January 13, 1858 | |
| Preceded by | Stephen P. Hempstead |
| Succeeded by | Ralph P. Lowe |
| Member of theIowa Territorial House of Representatives | |
| In office 1838–1839 | |
| In office 1843-1844 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1816-10-20)October 20, 1816 Deering, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Died | February 7, 1872(1872-02-07) (aged 55) Burlington, Iowa, U.S. |
| Resting place | Aspen Grove Cemetery |
| Political party | Whig (until 1855) Republican (after 1855) |
| Alma mater | Dartmouth College |
| Profession |
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| Signature | .png) |
James Wilson Grimes (October 20, 1816 – February 7, 1872) was an American politician, serving as thethird Governor of Iowa and aUnited States Senator fromIowa.
Born inDeering, New Hampshire, Grimes graduated from Hampton Academy and attendedDartmouth College. He studied law, moved west and commenced practice in a settlement in 'Black Hawk Purchase',Wisconsin Territory, that was later incorporated asBurlington, Iowa. He also farmed.
Grimes served as a member of theIowa Territorial House of Representatives for the 1838–1839 and 1843–1844 terms. He served asGovernor of Iowa from 1854 to 1858. While elected as a Whig in 1854, he was a guiding light in theRepublican Party's establishment in Iowa in 1855 and 1856.[1]
Grimes armed abolitionists, turning over part or all of a shipment of 1500 rifles. John Brown trained his army of 200 men in Springville, Iowa, near the state capitol in Iowa City under Grimes tenure, raiding Kansas and Missouri.[2]
Grimes was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate in 1859 and reelected in 1865. He served in the Senate from March 4, 1859, until December 6, 1869, when he resigned due to ill health.
In the Senate, he served as chairman of theCommittee on the District of Columbia (in the37th and38th Congresses), and theCommittee on Naval Affairs (in the39th through41st Congresses). He also served on theJoint Committee on Reconstruction which drafted theFourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
In 1861, Grimes was a member of thepeace convention held in Washington, D.C., in an effort to devise means to prevent the impendingCivil War. In December 1861, he introduced the senate bill which led to the creation of theMedal of Honor (initially only for Navy and Marine personnel).[3]
During PresidentAndrew Johnson'simpeachment trial, Grimes broke party ranks, along with six other Republican senators and voted for acquittal. SenatorsWilliam Pitt Fessenden,Joseph S. Fowler, Grimes,John B. Henderson,Lyman Trumbull,Peter G. Van Winkle,[citation needed] andEdmund G. Ross of Kansas, who provided the decisive vote,[4] defied their party and public opinion and voted against convicting Johnson because they were disturbed by how the proceedings had been manipulated in order to give a one-sided presentation of the evidence.[5] They were joined in bucking their party by three other Republican senators,James Dixon,James Rood Doolittle,Daniel Sheldon Norton[6] After the trial, CongressmanBenjamin Butler conducted hearings on the widespread reports that Republican senators had been bribed to vote for Johnson's acquittal. In Butler's hearings, and in subsequent inquiries, there was increasing evidence that some acquittal votes were acquired by promises of patronage jobs and cash cards.[5]
In 1869, after suffering astroke, Grimes formally resigned from the Senate on December 6, 1869.[7]
Grimes died in Burlington on February 7, 1872, aged 55. He is buried in theAspen Grove Cemetery in Burlington.[8]
The plot of land that his home was once located on is now home to an elementary school that bears his name.[citation needed]
The town ofGrimes, Iowa, is named for Grimes,[9] as well as the Grimes State Office Building inDes Moines.[10]: 206
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by James L. Thompson | Whig nomineeGovernor of Iowa 1854 | Succeeded by None |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Governor of Iowa 1854–1858 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 2) from Iowa March 4, 1859 – December 6, 1869 Served alongside:James Harlan,Samuel J. Kirkwood andJames Harlan | Succeeded by |
| Territorial(1838–1846) | ||
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| State(since 1846) | ||
| Class 2 |  | |
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| Class 3 | ||
Chairs of theUnited States Senate Committee on Armed Services | ||
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| Military Affairs Committee (1816–1947) | | |
| Naval Affairs Committee (1816–1947) | ||
| Armed Services Committee (1947–present) | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
