Meredith Poindexter Gentry | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee's 8th district | |
| In office March 4, 1839 – March 3, 1843 | |
| Preceded by | Abram P. Maury |
| Succeeded by | Joseph H. Peyton |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee's 7th district | |
| In office March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1853 | |
| Preceded by | David W. Dickinson |
| Succeeded by | Robert M. Bugg |
| Member of theTennessee House of Representatives | |
| In office 1835–1839 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 15, 1809 |
| Died | November 2, 1866 (aged 57) |
| Political party | Whig |
| Spouse(s) | Emily Saunders Gentry, Caledonia Brown Gentry |
| Children | Mary Gentry, Emily S. Gentry, Albert Gentry, Charles Gentry |
| Profession | planter, lawyer, politician,orator |
Meredith Poindexter Gentry (September 15, 1809 – November 2, 1866) was an American politician who representedTennessee'seighth andseventh districts in theUnited States House of Representatives.
Gentry was born inRockingham County, North Carolina, the son of Watson and Theodosia Poindexter Gentry. He moved with his parents toWilliamson County, Tennessee, in 1813. He completed preparatory studies, studied law, was admitted to thebar, and commenced practice inFranklin, Tennessee. He owned slaves, as did 40 out of 106 congressmen at the time he was a representative.[1] He first married Emily Saunders, with whom he had two daughters, Mary and Emily. With his second wife, Caledonia Brown, he had two sons, Albert and Charles.[2]
Gentry was a member of theTennessee House of Representatives from 1835 to 1839. He was elected as aWhig to theTwenty-sixth andTwenty-seventh Congresses for the eighth district of Tennessee. He served from March 4, 1839, to March 3, 1843.[3] Because of the death of his wife, he refused to be a candidate for renomination in 1842.[4]
Again, Gentry was elected to theTwenty-ninth and the three succeeding Congresses for the seventh district, after theelectoral districts Tennessee held had been reduced andreapportioned. He again served as aWhig. During theThirtieth Congress, he was the chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Indian Affairs. He served from March 4, 1845 to March 3, 1853,[5] and was not a candidate for renomination in 1852.
In 1855 Gentry was an unsuccessful candidate forgovernor of Tennessee. He lost to futureU.S. PresidentAndrew Johnson, who received 67,499 votes in the gubernatorial election. Gentry received 65,342 votes, leaving Johnson with a majority of 2,157. He retired to hisplantation in Tennessee, where he remained until 1861.
Gentry served in theConfederate States Congress during theAmerican Civil War. Though theBiographical Directory of the United States Congress lists him as a member of theConfederate House of Representatives during theFirst andSecond Confederate Congresses, other sources list him as merely as a member of the First Confederate Congress during its first two sessions. TheJournal of the Confederate Congress supports this view, listing him as having taken his seat on March 17, 1862, with his last appearance being near the day the second session ended, October 13, 1862. According to theBiographical Directory of the Tennessee General Assembly, he "may not have attended the 3rd and 4th sessions of the congress; was not a member of the 2nd Confederate Congress. He was captured inMiddle Tennessee in 1864 and requested that PresidentAbraham Lincoln send him south because of ill health; the request was granted."[6]
Gentry died inNashville, Tennessee on November 2, 1866 (age 57 years, 48 days), atClover Bottom, the home of his sister-in-law Mary Ann Hoggatt. He isinterred atMount Olivet Cemetery.[7]
| Party political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Whig nominee forGovernor of Tennessee 1855 | Succeeded by None |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's 8th congressional district 1839-1843 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's 7th congressional district 1845-1853 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
