James Tillman

James H. Tillman (born June 27, 1869 in South Carolina , †  April 1, 1911 in Asheville , North Carolina ) was an American politician . Between 1901 and 1903 he was lieutenant governor of the state of South Carolina.

Career

James Tillman was the nephew of Benjamin Tillman (1847-1918), the governor of South Carolina and the US senator for that state. After studying law and admission to the bar, he began working in this profession at Edgefield . He was also active in the militia, where he was made captain in 1891. During the Spanish-American War of 1898 he was first lieutenant colonel with the 1st South Carolina Volunteer Infantry Regiment . After the commander's death, he was appointed colonel and his successor. He and his unit were not deployed in the war, but always stationed in their native South Carolina.

Politically, like his uncle, Tillman was a member of the Democratic Party . In 1900 he was elected lieutenant governor of South Carolina alongside Miles Benjamin McSweeney . He held this office between 1901 and 1903. He was Deputy Governor and Chairman of the State Senate . In 1902 he ran unsuccessfully in the primary elections for the office of governor. He attributed this defeat to the journalist Narciso Gener Gonzales, among others. He had been a political opponent of the Tillmans for decades and wrote critical newspaper articles about their politics. On January 15, 1903, shortly before the end of his tenure as Lieutenant Governor, James Tillman shot Gonzales in front of the State House in Columbia . He died a few days later from his injuries. The act was observed by several eyewitnesses and it was apparently a clear murder attempt. Accordingly, a murder charge was also brought. At the politically motivated trial, Tillman was acquitted for alleged self-defense. Naturally, the judgment was controversial, but final. James Tillman then returned to Edgefield and died of tuberculosis on April 1, 1911 in Asheville .

Web links

• James Tillman in the database of Find a Grave (English)

Individual evidence

1. ^ South Carolina Digital Newspaper Program: The 1903 Tillman-Gonzales Affair: South Carolina's "Crime of the Century"