Thomas E. Bramlette

• 1. The Boy From Cross Roads

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  Thomas Elliott Bramlette entered the world on the 3rd of January 1817 at a place called Elliott's Cross Roads. This location sat within Cumberland County before it became Clinton County. His father held the rank of Colonel Ambrose S. Bramlette and served multiple terms in both the Kentucky Senate and House of Representatives. The young Thomas studied law with intensity during his teenage years. He gained admission to the bar in 1837 when he was only twenty years old. That same year he began practicing law in Louisville while marrying Sallie Travis. They raised two children named Thomas and Corinne together. His political ambitions grew steadily through the early 1840s. He won a seat representing Clinton County in the General Assembly in 1841. Governor John J. Crittenden later appointed him as Commonwealth's Attorney in 1848. Bramlette resigned that post in 1850 to focus on private legal work. He moved his family to Columbia, Kentucky by 1852. Voters elected him as a judge for the state's 6th Judicial District in 1856. He served five years with distinction before the war changed everything.

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• 2. The Judge Who Became A Soldier

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  Bramlette made a dramatic choice on the 7th of August 1861 when he accepted a commission as colonel in the Union Army. He resigned his judgeship to take this new role. This action violated Kentucky's official agreement to remain neutral during the Civil War. He raised and commanded the 3rd Kentucky Infantry regiment himself. On September 19, his troops marched toward Lexington with specific orders. They aimed to forestall a peace conference scheduled there for September 21. The soldiers also intended to arrest the state's junior Senator John C. Breckinridge. A delay allowed Breckinridge to escape before officers could make the arrest. Breckinridge subsequently enlisted in the Confederate Army shortly after fleeing. Bramlette resigned his military commission on the 13th of July 1862 at Decherd, Tennessee. He returned to Louisville to accept President Abraham Lincoln's offer to become United States District Attorney for Kentucky. In that position he vigorously enforced wartime laws against Confederates and their sympathizers.

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• 3. A Landslide Under Gunpoint

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  Union Democrats initially chose Joshua Fry Bell as their candidate for governor of Kentucky in 1863. Bell withdrew from consideration because he doubted Kentucky's future within the Union. The party central committee selected Bramlette to replace him instead. Bramlette declined a brigadier general commission in the Union Army to run for office. Union forces intimidated and jailed supporters of his opponent Charles A. Wickliffe during the campaign. This interference resulted in a landslide victory for Bramlette by nearly four-to-one margins. He turned down an offered seat in the U.S. House of Representatives while serving. He also rejected a nomination to become the Democratic candidate for Vice-President in 1864. His term began with strong support for the Union cause despite these political maneuvers.

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• 4. The Governor Who Turned Rebel

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  Bramlette addressed the General Assembly in December 1863 declaring the state had met its soldier quota. He proclaimed on January 4 of the following year that rebel sympathizers would face stiff fines or imprisonment. These measures targeted anyone aiding guerrilla raids within the Commonwealth. Yet within a year he issued a proclamation stating he would bloodily baptize the state into the Confederacy. General Stephen Burbridge decided to enlist black men from Kentucky for military service. Bramlette argued this measure should only occur if white recruitment failed to meet quotas. Lincoln authorized a special census in 1863 showing 1,650 freemen and 40,000 enslaved males of military age. By March 1864 Bramlette reluctantly agreed to Black enlistment since white numbers fell short. He stipulated owners must consent and receive three hundred dollars per man. Enslaved men fled to enlist by April despite the owner consent requirement. This triggered violence against those seeking freedom through service. By June 1864 Union Army Adj. Gen. Lorenzo Thomas ordered owner consent no longer required. The situation worsened when President Lincoln suspended habeas corpus for citizens on the 5th of July 1864.

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• 5. Pardons And Political Resistance

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  Bramlette proclaimed a day of fasting and prayer upon hearing news of Lincoln's assassination. The General Assembly petitioned new president Andrew Johnson to end martial law in the state. Tensions between state and federal governments remained high throughout the period. Bramlette announced that every white male citizen twenty-one years old would be eligible to vote. This rule applied to residents who had lived in the Commonwealth for at least two years. Kentucky gave control of both houses of the General Assembly to Democrats after this change. Five congressional seats also went to Democratic candidates. President Johnson received the message and ended martial law while restoring habeas corpus. When the General Assembly convened in December 1865 Bramlette issued pardons to most ex-Confederates. He sought to restore harmony within the fractured state. The majority of the General Assembly opposed passage of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments. Bramlette protested the establishment of the Freedmen's Bureau in the Commonwealth during these debates.

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• 6. Building A New Commonwealth

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  Bramlette took great pride in accomplishments unrelated to the Civil War or its aftermath. He achieved significant reduction of the state's debt through careful financial management. He established the Agricultural and Mechanical College which later became the University of Kentucky. His administration supported construction of turnpikes financed by government bonds. He encouraged development of natural resources across the region. Immigration efforts aimed to obtain adequate labor for reconstruction projects. Following his term as governor he conducted a failed campaign for U.S. Senator. He married Mary E. Graham Adams in 1874 after his first wife died. Bramlette returned to his law practice in Louisville where he remained active. He served as patron to many charitable organizations until his death on the 12th of January 1875. He is buried at Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville today.

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