Cameron A. Morrison
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from North Carolina's 10th district
In office
January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1945
Preceded byNew Constituency (Redistricting)
Succeeded byJoseph W. Ervin
United States Senator
from North Carolina
In office
December 13, 1930 – December 4, 1932
Appointed byOliver Max Gardner
Preceded byLee S. Overman
Succeeded byRobert R. Reynolds
55th Governor of North Carolina
In office
January 12, 1921 – January 14, 1925
LieutenantWilliam B. Cooper
Preceded byThomas Walter Bickett
Succeeded byAngus Wilton McLean
Personal details
Born(1869-10-05)October 5, 1869
Rockingham, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedAugust 20, 1953(1953-08-20) (aged 83)
Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Political partyDemocratic
SpousesLottie May Tomlinson
Sara Virginia Ecker Watts
Children4 (including Angelia Lawrance Morrison Harris)

Cameron A. Morrison (October 5, 1869 – August 20, 1953) was an American politician and the 55th governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1921 to 1925.

Early life and career

He was born in 1869 in Richmond County, North Carolina.

In 1898, Morrison participated in the Wilmington insurrection of 1898, a violent coup d'état by a group of white supremacists. They expelled opposition black and white political leaders from the city, destroyed the property and businesses of black citizens built up since the Civil War, including the only black newspaper in the city, and killed an estimated 60 to more than 300 people.[1] The governor of North Carolina, Daniel Lindsay Russell, was forced to flee from Wilmington to Raleigh. Morrison boarded Russell's train in Maxton, North Carolina in the company of a small band of Red Shirts and warned Russell that a more hostile band of Red Shirts were waiting at a later stop. He advised Russell to hide in the baggage car to avoid being lynched, which he did.[2]

In 1900, he was elected to the North Carolina Senate for one term.[3]

Governorship

With the backing of Sen. Furnifold Simmons and the help of race-baiting tactics employed by A. D. Watts, Morrison defeated O. Max Gardner in the 1920 Democratic primary for governor.[4] In the general election, he defeated Republican nominee John J. Parker.

Morrison was inaugurated on January 12, 1921.[5] He came to be called "the Good Roads governor" for his support of a modern highway system. Morrison also pushed for increased funds for public education, while also battling the teaching of the theory of evolution.[6]

Later career

He was later appointed to serve as a United States senator for the state of North Carolina (after the death of Lee S. Overman) between 1930 and 1932, but lost his seat in the Democratic primary runoff to Robert R. Reynolds.[7]

Morrison was later elected to one term in the United States House of Representatives from 1943 to 1945.[8] He again lost a Democratic primary for a U.S. Senate seat in 1944, to Clyde R. Hoey.[9] He died in Quebec City in 1953.

Personal life

Morrison was married twice. His first wife, Lottie May Tomlinson, gave birth to four children but only one, Angelia Lawrance Morrison, survived infancy.[10] Tomlinson died in 1919.[11]

In 1924, while serving as governor, Morrison married a second time to Sara Virginia Ecker Watts, the widow of George Washington Watts.[12] Their wedding ceremony was held at Harwood Hall.[12] With his second wife, Morrison built Morrocroft, a large estate in Charlotte.[12]

Legacy

A ten-story residence hall on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is named in Morrison's honor. His home at Charlotte, Morrocroft, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.[13]

A library in Charlotte was named after Morrison, but was renamed in 2020 due to Morrison's ties with the Red Shirts and white supremacy.[14] A residence hall at North Carolina A&T State University was also named after Morrison, but the name was removed in 2020.[15]

References

  1. ↑ "RACE QUESTION IN POLITICS:North Carolina White Men Seek to Wrest Control from the Negroes". New York Times. October 24, 1898. Archived from the original on January 26, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  2. ↑ Zucchino, David (2020). Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy. Atlantic Monthly Press. ISBN 9780802128386., pp. 172-173
  3. ↑ "NCpedia biography of Cameron Morrison". Archived from the original on August 6, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  4. ↑ News & Observer: "What the obituary didn't say" by Rob Christensen Archived 2008-07-18 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "Morrison, Bickett And Gardner All Receive Ovation At Inaugural". The Morning Star. Vol. CVI, no. 132. January 13, 1921. p. 1.
  6. ↑ "Evolution Controversy in NC in the 1920s". unc.edu. Archived from the original on February 20, 2009. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Our Campaigns - NC US Senate - D Runoff Race - Jul 02, 1932". ourcampaigns.com. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Our Campaigns - NC District 10 Race - Nov 03, 1942". ourcampaigns.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2007. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Our Campaigns - NC US Senate - D Primary Race - May 27, 1944". ourcampaigns.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2007. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  10. ↑ "GOVERNOR CAMERON MORRISON, n.d., 1921-1926". North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. April 14, 2008. Archived from the original on November 10, 2023. Retrieved October 8, 2023.
  11. ↑ Ham, Marie Sharpe; Blake, Debra A.; Morris, C. Edwards (2000). North Carolina's First Ladies 1891-2001, Who Have Resided in the Executive Mansion At 200 North Blount Street. Raleigh, North Carolina: The North Carolina Executive Mansion Fine Arts Committee and the North Carolina Executive Mansion Fund, Inc. pp. 31–33. ISBN 0-86526-294-2.
  12. 1 2 3 Moore, Jeanelle Coulter; Hamrick, Grace Rutledge (1981). The First Ladies of North Carolina, First Ladies from 1776-1889; Brief Biographies of the First Ladies Who Have Lived in the Present Mansion (1889-1981). Raleigh, North Carolina: The Executive Mansion Fine Arts Committee, The Bicentennial Foundation, and the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation. pp. 35–37.
  13. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  14. ↑ "Charlotte library removes name of white supremacist from branch". WBTV. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
  15. ↑ Whitlow, Jamille (September 29, 2020). "Board of Trustees removes names of two campus buildings". The A&T Register. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
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