Letter from an unidentified sender in Milledgeville, Georgia, to Governor A. B. Moore.
Item
Identifier
RSG00248_f09_Q0000134699_Q0000134702
Title
Letter from an unidentified sender in Milledgeville, Georgia, to Governor A. B. Moore.
Rights
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Type
Text
Creator
Unknown
Date
December 7, 1860
Description
Written by an unknown person to A.B Moore, this letter details Georgia's secession from the Union over issues regarding slavery. The sender emphasizes that their opinion, the succession is right for the southern states and desires all states to work together against the Union. The author's goal is to ensure that A.B. Moore understands that the good of the Southern states is to break away from the union to ensure the continuation of slave labor. Following this letter, Georgia and Alabama both separated from the Union on January 11th, 1861.
Format
letter
Place
Midledegeville (Ga.)
Publisher
Alabama Department of Archives and History. (electronic version)
Contributor
Anna Arnwine
transcription
Midledgeville Ga. Decr. 7. 1860
My dear Sir -
I arrived here last
night - have had an interview
with Govr. Brown to-day & have
spent the balance of the day in
hearing the debates in the Senate
& House of Representatives - I am
much pleased with the Govr. found
him a very clever polite gentleman
of say 45 & a warm secessionist.
He gave it as his opinion that
Ga. would secede when her con=
=vention meets - but said that
he thought the action of SC, Ala.
Fla. or any other southern state
would [reduce?] Ga's going out to
an absolute certainty - In mixing
with the members & others &
hearing some of their speeches, I
feel that a general disposition
has prevailed to refer all matters
connected with the question
of secession to the Convention which
is to assemble on the 16th Janry -
& hence the Legislature has been
averse to expressing any opinion
on the great pending question.
No direct vote has been taken
in the Senate (which has when
full 132 members) but some
Cooperation resolutions were in
=troduced some days ago & either
on account of the disposition
above indicated or the strength
of the secession movement, they
were voted down by some twenty
majority - The opinion of the Govr.
& others with whom I have con
=versed is that a large majority of
the Senate are in favor of secession.
I heard a discussion in the
House this evening on the reso
=lutions of which I enclose you
a copy - Ga. may well be proud
of many of her eloquent sons
among whom I will mention
Hartridge of Savannah & Gipson
of Augusta - Their speeches were
pointed, able & thrilling - several
times bringing down the applause
of the House - Some of the Co-opera
=tion men were resisted - but thenThe grievances now affecting the
Southern States must be effectively
resisted - The interests & destiny
of the slaveholding states of this
Union are & must remain com
=mon - the secession of one from the
Union, must more or less involve
& affect all -
Therefore Resolved -
That in
the judgment of this General
Assembly any State in this Union
has the sovereign right to secede
from the Union whenever she
deems it necessary & proper
for her safety, honor or happiness
and that when a state exercises this
right of seceding the Federal Gov
=ernment has no right to coerce
or make war upon her because
of the exercise of such right to
secede - And should any southern
state secede from the American
Union and the Federal Government
makes war upon her therefor,
Georgia will give the seceding south
=ern state the aid, encouragementsympathy & assistance of her entire
people - and should the state of
Georgia secede from the Union
by the action of the Convention
of her people to assemble on the
16th of Jany - next she asks the
like sympathy & assistance from
her southern sisters which she
hereby tenders to them -
My dear Sir -
I arrived here last
night - have had an interview
with Govr. Brown to-day & have
spent the balance of the day in
hearing the debates in the Senate
& House of Representatives - I am
much pleased with the Govr. found
him a very clever polite gentleman
of say 45 & a warm secessionist.
He gave it as his opinion that
Ga. would secede when her con=
=vention meets - but said that
he thought the action of SC, Ala.
Fla. or any other southern state
would [reduce?] Ga's going out to
an absolute certainty - In mixing
with the members & others &
hearing some of their speeches, I
feel that a general disposition
has prevailed to refer all matters
connected with the question
of secession to the Convention which
is to assemble on the 16th Janry -
& hence the Legislature has been
averse to expressing any opinion
on the great pending question.
No direct vote has been taken
in the Senate (which has when
full 132 members) but some
Cooperation resolutions were in
=troduced some days ago & either
on account of the disposition
above indicated or the strength
of the secession movement, they
were voted down by some twenty
majority - The opinion of the Govr.
& others with whom I have con
=versed is that a large majority of
the Senate are in favor of secession.
I heard a discussion in the
House this evening on the reso
=lutions of which I enclose you
a copy - Ga. may well be proud
of many of her eloquent sons
among whom I will mention
Hartridge of Savannah & Gipson
of Augusta - Their speeches were
pointed, able & thrilling - several
times bringing down the applause
of the House - Some of the Co-opera
=tion men were resisted - but thenThe grievances now affecting the
Southern States must be effectively
resisted - The interests & destiny
of the slaveholding states of this
Union are & must remain com
=mon - the secession of one from the
Union, must more or less involve
& affect all -
Therefore Resolved -
That in
the judgment of this General
Assembly any State in this Union
has the sovereign right to secede
from the Union whenever she
deems it necessary & proper
for her safety, honor or happiness
and that when a state exercises this
right of seceding the Federal Gov
=ernment has no right to coerce
or make war upon her because
of the exercise of such right to
secede - And should any southern
state secede from the American
Union and the Federal Government
makes war upon her therefor,
Georgia will give the seceding south
=ern state the aid, encouragementsympathy & assistance of her entire
people - and should the state of
Georgia secede from the Union
by the action of the Convention
of her people to assemble on the
16th of Jany - next she asks the
like sympathy & assistance from
her southern sisters which she
hereby tenders to them -
Subject
Brown, Joseph E. (Joseph Emerson), 1821-1894;
Moore, A. B. (Andrew Barry), 1807-1873;
Governors--Alabama;
Alabama--Politics and government--To 1865;
Secession--Southern States;
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865;
Milledgeville (Ga.)
Moore, A. B. (Andrew Barry), 1807-1873;
Governors--Alabama;
Alabama--Politics and government--To 1865;
Secession--Southern States;
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865;
Milledgeville (Ga.)