Virginia 1793 U.S. House of Representatives, District 4

Office:
U.S. House of Representatives (Federal)
Title:
U.S. Congressman
Jurisdiction:
Federal
Label:
Virginia 1793 U.S. House of Representatives, District 4
Date:
1793
State:
Virginia
Type:
General
Iteration:
First Ballot
Office/Role:
U.S. House of Representatives/U.S. Congressman
Candidates:
Francis Preston, Abraham Trigg
Candidates: Francis Preston[1]Abraham Trigg
Affiliation:Federalist
Final Result: [2]--
District of Four--
Grayson County--
Greenbrier County--
Kanawha County--
Lee County--
Montgomery County--
Russell County--
Washington County--
Wythe County--

Notes:

[1]Elected.
[2]"In the year 1793, in the election for a representative in the Congress of the United States, the candidates before the people of the Fourth District of Virginia, which district was composed of the counties of Wythe, Greenbrier, Kanawha, Lee, Russell, Montgomery, Grayson and Washington, were Abraham Trigg, of Montgomery county and Francis Preston, of Washington county. Abraham Trigg was a Jeffersonian Republican, while Preston was a Washingtonian Federalist, and the contest between the candidates representing these diverse principles was bitter. The result was the election of Colonel Preston by a majority of ten votes. Colonel Trigg was not satisfied with the result and contested the election of Preston, and assigned the following grounds to sustain his contest. First. That the sheriff of Lee County closed the poll at 2 P. M. on the day of the election and refused to reopen the same. Second. That the sheriff of Washington County adjourned the poll two days instead of one as required by the law, and that nonresidents of the State voted for Colonel Preston in said election. Third. That Captain William Preston, a brother of Francis Preston, was stationed near Montgomery courthouse with sixty or seventy Federal troops, and that on the day of the election, Captain Preston's troops were marched three times around the court-house and were paraded in front of and close to the door thereof. Fourth. That said troops were polled in favor of Preston. That a part of the troops stood at the door of the courthouse and refused to let the electors favoring Trigg enter the house, and in one instance knocked down a magistrate who sought admission, being an advocate of Colonel Trigg. This contest was as hotly fought before Congress as the election had been before the people. The Elections Committee of the House of Representatives on the 17th day of April, 1794, reported in favor of unseating Francis Preston. This report was debated for many days, after which a vote was taken, which vote resulted in the report of the committee being rejected and Francis Preston was thereupon declared duly seated. Colonel Preston was returned a member of Congress from this district by successive elections till the year 1797." History Of Southwest Virginia, 1746-1786.

References:

Summers, Lewis Preston. History Of Southwest Virginia, 1746-1786. Richmond, VA. : J. L. Hill Printing, 1903.

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handwritten notes
Phil's original notebook pages that were used to compile this election. These notes are considered a draft of the electronic version. Therefore, the numbers may not match. To verify numbers you will need to check the original sources cited. Some original source material is available at the American Antiquarian Society).

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