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Thomas J. Word

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Thomas J. Word
BERJAYA
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Mississippi's at-large district
In office
May 29, 1838 – March 3, 1839
Preceded bySamuel J. Gholson
Succeeded byAlbert G. Brown
Member of the North Carolina House of Representatives
from the Surry County district
In office
1832–1833
Member of the Texas Senate
from the 4th district
In office
January 14, 1873 – January 13, 1874
Preceded byElisha Pettit
Succeeded byWinfield Brown Stirman
Personal details
BornThomas Jefferson Word
(1805-02-06)February 6, 1805
Surry County, North Carolina, US
DiedMay 25, 1890(1890-05-25) (aged 85)
Palestine, Texas, US
PartyWhig
Other political
affiliations
Democratic
RelationsWilliam Faulkner (nephew)
ProfessionPolitician, lawyer

Thomas Jefferson Word (February 6, 1805 – May 25, 1890) was an American politician and lawyer. A Whig and later a Democrat, he was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi. He also served in the North Carolina House of Representatives and the Texas Senate.

Early life

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Word was born on February 6, 1805, in Surry County, North Carolina, the son of Thomas Adams Word and Justiana (née Dickerson) Word.[1] He was presumably named for Thomas Jefferson.[2]

Career

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By 1827, Word owned 422 acres of land. He later moved to Pontotoc, Mississippi, being admitted to the bar there on November 7, 1836. In the 1840s, he moved to Holly Springs.[1]

Word was a Whig.[2] In 1832 and 1833, he represented Surry County in the North Carolina House of Representatives, during which he served in the Committee on Improvements.[1] He contested the United States House of Representatives election of Samuel J. Gholson, with Word being declared the winner. He served in the House from May 29, 1838, to March 3, 1839, representing Mississippi's at-large district.[3]

Word later moved to Texas. He was a Democratic member of the Texas Senate, from January 14, 1873, to January 13, 1874, representing the 4th district. While serving, he was a member of the Committees on Constitutional Amendments; on Education; on the Judiciary; on the Land Office; on the Penitentiary; on Privileges and Elections; and on State Affairs.[4]

Ideologically, Word leaned conservative.[5] Sources conflict on whether he owned slaves,[1][6] though he held a states' rights view on the matter, with him representing Marshall County at several pro-slavery conventions.[1]

Personal life and death

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Word married Mary E. Word c. 1839; they had three children recorded by the 1850 United States Census. He left the public eye around the mid-1850s.[1] He died on May 25, 1890, aged 85,[3] in Palestine, Texas.[7] His place of burial is unknown.[2] An archive of his papers is held by the East Texas Research Center.[8] He was an uncle of William Faulkner.[9]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Word, Thomas Jefferson | NCpedia". www.ncpedia.org. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Political Graveyard: Index to Politicians: Woody to Worthing". politicalgraveyard.com. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Word, Thomas Jefferson". bioguide.congress.gov. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  4. ↑ "Member profile for Thomas Jefferson Word - Texas Legislative Reference Library". lrl.texas.gov. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  5. ↑ "WORD, Thomas Jefferson (1805-1890)". www.voteview.com. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  6. ↑ "More than 1,800 congressmen once enslaved Black people. This is who they were, and how they shaped the nation". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Altar and Tomb". The Fort Worth Gazette. June 5, 1890. p. 4. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Thomas Jefferson Word Collection". archives.sfasu.edu. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  9. ↑ Williamson, Joel (December 14, 1995). William Faulkner and Southern History. Oxford University Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-19-535640-3.
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