John E. Massey

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John E. Massey

John E. Massey (April 2, 1819–April 24,1901; aged 82), known widely as "Parson  Massey", was preacher, farmer and statesman, who for twenty-five years after the Civil War was one of the foremost men of the State.

Massey served as the lieutenant governor of Virginia (1886–1890), a member of the General Assembly (1873­–1879), and an influential member of two Virginia political parties.

Born on April 2, 1819 in Spotsylvania County, the youngest of seven children.


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Biography

In 1854 he moved from Harrisonburg to Albemarle County and occupied “Ash Lawn,” the former residence of James Monroe. He served as a Baptist minister before the American Civil War (1861–1865), earning him the nickname Parson Massey. For the five years prior to his death, Massey spent most of his time at his "winter residence" on Park Street in the City of Charlottesville

He won election to the General Assembly in 1873 as a Conservative, but joined the new Readjuster Party in 1879. [1]After he lost his seat in the Senate, the Readjusters appointed Massey auditor of public accounts in 1879. He broke with Readjuster leader William Mahone in 1882 and the next year Massey helped revive the Democratic Party. As part of a Democratic sweep in 1885, Massey won election as lieutenant governor, supporting the disfranchisement of African Americans.

In 1889, the General Assembly voted him to the first of two terms as state superintendent of public instruction. During his tenure, he promoted summer teacher training institutes but endorsed a proposal that would limit already meager appropriations for African American schools. He selected the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute (later Hampton University) as the site for a state-supported summer normal institutes for teacher education. He remained active in the Baptist Church throughout his life, supported the temperance movement.

On the 24th of April, 1901, this special was sent from Charlottesville:

"Hon. John E. Massey died at 6.15 this afternoon. About a week ago he spoke in the rain at Bruner's Store, five miles south of Charlottesville; and a deep cold resulted. This, in turn, developed into grip, which in a younger man would have amounted to very little. On Monday, Mr. Massey's physician refused to allow him to attend the convention, which nominated him and Mr. Boaz as Democratic candidates for the Constitutional Convention, as his malady refused to yield to treatment..." [2]

Massey died at his residence on Park Street and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery next to his first wife, Margaret A. Massey (1829 - 1889, aged 59). John and Margaret were the parents of seven children. His second son, Walter W. Massey, was killed by a passenger train on November 23, 1902. [3]

References

  1. Web. Local Department, Staunton Spectator, June 22, 1880, retrieved April 22, 2023.
  2. Web. Autobiography of John E. Massey; ed. by Elizabeth H. Hancock, John E. Massey, edited by Elizabeth H. Hancock, 1909, retrieved November 10, 2022.
  3. Web. Killed By Passenger Train, Daily Progress Digitized Microfilm, Lindsay family, November 24, 1902, retrieved November 24, 2022. Print. November 24, 1902 page 1.

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