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GOVERNOR SIMON P.
HUGHES
(1885-1889) Arkansas Genealogy Trails Simon P. Hughes, Arkansas's 15th governor, was born near Carthage, Tennessee, on April 14, 1830. He was educated in Tennessee during fall and winter terms, when he was not needed to work on the family farm. When Hughes mother died in 1842, his father moved to Texas where he died two years later. At the age of fourteen, Hughes was orphaned. After working on a Pulaski County farm for two years, Hughes attended the Sylvan Academy in Tennessee (Sumner County), where he studied mathematics and Latin. Hughes began his studies of law in 1848 at Clinton College. Affording his education proved too difficult for Hughes; In 1849, he could not return to school, but moved instead to Monroe County, Arkansas. He resumed farm work, but, when only twenty-four, succeeded his friend J.A. Harvick as sheriff in 1853. His tenure from 1854 to 1856 allowed him to continue his law studies, and when he retired from the sheriff's office in 1857, he was admitted to the Arkansas bar and started a private practice in Clarendon, Arkansas. His political philosophies changed throughout his career. He initially aligned himself with the Whig party. He also spoke out against secession following the election of Lincoln. During the Civil War, he enlisted in the Confederate army and was commissioned as a captain, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. During the war, he became a proponent of the Democratic party. In 1866, Hughes was elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives, serving from 1866 to 1867. From 1867 to 1874, Hughes returned to his law practice and continued farm work. Hughes returned to politics in 1874 by serving as the delegate from Monroe County during the constitutional convention. This service provided him provided him with a statewide reputation and led to him being chosen as the state's attorney general. He served as the attorney general until 1877, where he worked to make the newly created government a success. He aided in the state's efforts to collect taxes from railroad land. When a bid for governorship failed in 1876, Hughes moved his practice to Little Rock. For the following eight years, he practiced law and farmed. Hughes sought the gubernatorial nomination for a second time. In a tight race for the Democratic nomination, Hughes beat Colonel John G. Fletcher, a Little Rock merchant. In September of 1884, Hughes beat out Republican opponent, Thomas Boyles, with nearly twice as many votes. His governorship was marked by his effort to make provisions for statewide institutions like the insane asylum, the Institute for the Blind, the Deaf Mute institute, and the penitentiary - causes of previous Arkansas governors. Hughes' administration also reorganized Arkansas Industrial University and created the office of state geologist. Public executions were abolished and limitations were imposed on the sale of intoxicating beverages. And Hughes, like previous Democrat governors, was concerned with the repayment of state debt. Through Hughes close workings with the state's legislature, the capitol received repair, state funding for public schools increased, and the treasury enjoyed a surplus - all without the state borrowing money. This was, in part, due to the creation of the state debt board in 1885, which was charged with the responsibility of reducing state debt, aided by the Fishback Amendment. In 1886, Hughes, aided by both his economic successes and by Arkansas voters being further divided by the attempted creation of a third political party, was reelected. In 1888, in the face of a popular grassroots revolt by farmers, Hughes sought a third term. This time he faced strong challengers from within his own party. In a convention marked by arm twisting and vote trading, the other candidates threw their support to James Phillip Eagle, securing him the nomination. Hughes was elected in 1889 to the Arkansas Supreme Court as an associate justice, and reelected in 1896. He served nearly 16 years on the bench, and did not seek a third term. Justice Simon P. Hughes died in Little Rock, on June 29, 1906, and is buried at the Mount Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, Arkansas. --Courtesy of the Arkansas History Commission. |