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William Cannon

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William Cannon
40th Governor of Delaware
In office
January 20, 1863 – March 1, 1865
Preceded byWilliam Burton
Succeeded byGove Saulsbury
Member of the Delaware House of Representatives
In office
January 6, 1845 – January 6, 1849
Personal details
Born(1809-03-15)March 15, 1809
Bridgeville, Delaware, U.S.
DiedMarch 1, 1865(1865-03-01) (aged 55)
Bridgeville, Delaware, U.S.
PartyDemocratic
Republican
SpouseMargaret Ann Barker
ChildrenPhilip L. Cannon
OccupationMerchant

William Cannon (March 15, 1809 – March 1, 1865) was an American merchant and politician from Bridgeville, in Sussex County, Delaware. He was a member of the Democratic Party and later the Republican Party, who served in the Delaware General Assembly and as Governor of Delaware during much of the Civil War.

Early life and family

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Cannon was born at Bridgeville, in Sussex County, Delaware, the son of Josiah and Nancy Bowlin Cannon. He married Margaret Ann Barker and had six children. He began working in his father's merchandising business in Bridgeville, and gradually expanded it to include lumber, grain, grist and saw mills, and a brick yard. His business interests included peaches, banking, and newspaper publishing, and he was a director of the Delaware Railroad.[citation needed]

Cannon's eldest son, William Laws Cannon (1839–1863), served in the Union Army during the Civil War. He was the captain of Company E of the First Delaware Cavalry. The younger William contracted typhoid fever and died on August 18, 1863 during the Gettysburg campaign.[1]

Governor of Delaware

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Cannon was elected as a Democrat to the state house for the 1845–46 session and the 1847–48 session. From 1849 until 1851 he was state treasurer. Although he had been a leader in the Democratic Party prior to the 1862 elections, at that time he switched parties and became a Republican. Delaware's political establishment was dominated by Democrats, but Cannon was staunchly in favor of the Union from the outset of the secession crisis.[2]

Fearing an outbreak of violence as tensions were running high during the 1862 Delaware gubernatorial election, Delaware Republicans requested federal troops to protect the state's polling places. The troops came, supervised the election, and Cannon was elected, defeating Democrat Samuel Jefferson from New Castle County. However, Cannon faced a General Assembly with a Democratic majority in both houses.[2]

Democrats in the state legislature were furiously opposed to the new Governor, and condemned "both the actions of the Federal Administration and those among our own citizens, who for partisan purposes alone sought to defeat the fair expression of the popular will at the polls by the potent influence of Federal bayonets." The State House refused to allow Cannon the use of its facilities for his inauguration, but he was defiant in the face of pro-slavery Delaware Democrats who had been outraged by President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation which came into effect on January 1, 1863. Cannon stated in his inaugural address that "slavery in this state is doomed. The period may be longer or shorter, but the result is inevitable."[2]

In 1863, federal troops were once again called to supervise a special election to fill the seat of deceased U.S. Representative William Temple. The army required voters to swear a loyalty oath, and as a result Democrats boycotted the election, with only 15 votes cast in the state for the Democratic candidate.[2]

Democrats took part in the 1864 elections, winning the state's sole US House seat and maintaining control of the legislature. The General Assembly rejected Cannon's request to approve the Thirteenth Amendment prohibiting slavery.[2] This act had been approved by neighboring border state Maryland, but Delaware's Democrats would refuse to pass this measure until 1901.

Cannon served as Governor of Delaware from January 20, 1863, until his death while in office on March 1, 1865.[3] He had become ill, some said, after helping to extinguish a fire. He was almost 56 years old and the eighth governor to die in office.

Delaware General Assembly
(sessions while Governor)
Year Assembly Senate majority Speaker House majority Speaker
1863–1864 72nd Democratic John R. Tatum Democratic John Sorden
1865–1866 73rd Democratic Gove Saulsbury Democratic Shephard P. Houston

Death and legacy

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Cannon died at Bridgeville, Delaware, and was buried there in the Bridgeville Methodist Cemetery. His son Philip L. Cannon became the first Lieutenant Governor of Delaware in 1901.

Electoral history

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Elections are held on the first Tuesday after November 1. Members of the Delaware General Assembly took office in the first Tuesday of January. State representatives have a term of two years. The governor takes office the third Tuesday in January, and has a four-year term.

Public offices
Office Type Location Began office Ended office Notes
State Representative Legislature Dover January 6, 1845 January 6, 1847
State Representative Legislature Dover January 6, 1847 January 6, 1849
State Treasurer Executive Dover January 6, 1849 January 6, 1851
Governor Executive Dover January 20, 1863 March 1, 1865 died in office
Delaware General Assembly service
Dates Assembly Chamber Majority Governor Committees District
1845–1846 63rd State House Whig Thomas Stockton Sussex at-large
1847–1848 64th State House Whig William Tharp Sussex at-large
Election results
Year Office Subject Party Votes % Opponent Party Votes %
1862 Governor William Cannon Republican 8,155 50% Samuel Jefferson Democratic 8,044 50%

References

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  1. ↑ "William Laws Cannon (Dickinson Chronicles) | House Divided". hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu. Retrieved 2025-12-30.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Powell, Walter A. (1928). A History of Delaware. Boston: Christopher Publishing House. p. 263-282.
  3. ↑ "Delaware Governor William Cannon". National Governors Association. Retrieved September 12, 2012.

Further reading

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  • Conrad, Henry C. (1908). History of the State of Delaware. Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Wickersham Company.
  • Hancock, Harold Bell. (1961). Delaware during the Civil War. Wilmington, Delaware: Historical Society of Delaware. ISBN 0-924117-24-9. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  • Hoffecker, Carol E. (2004). Democracy in Delaware. Wilmington, Delaware: Cedar Tree Books. ISBN 1-892142-23-6.
  • Martin, Roger A. (1984). History of Delaware Through its Governors. Wilmington, Delaware: McClafferty Press.
  • Martin, Roger A. (1995). Memoirs of the Senate. Newark, DE: Roger A. Martin.
  • Scharf, John Thomas (1888). History of Delaware 1609-1888. 2 vols. Philadelphia: L. J. Richards & Co.

Images

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Places with more information

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