Representative David W. Dickinson

David W. Dickinson (June 10, 1808 – April 27, 1845) was an American politician who represented Tennessee’s eighth district in the United States House of Representatives. Serving two nonconsecutive terms in Congress during a formative period in the nation’s political development, he participated in the legislative process as both a Jacksonian and later as a member of the Whig Party, representing the interests of his Tennessee constituents in the House of Representatives.

Dickinson was born on June 10, 1808, in Franklin, Williamson County, Tennessee, the son of David Dickinson and Fanny Noailles Murfree. He was connected to a prominent Middle Tennessee family and was the nephew and later son-in-law of U.S. Representative William Hardy Murfree, a relationship that placed him within an established political and legal milieu from an early age. Raised in this environment, he pursued the classical and preparatory studies typical of young men of his social standing in the early nineteenth century.

After completing his preparatory education, Dickinson attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, one of the leading institutions of higher learning in the South at the time. Following his graduation, he studied law, was admitted to the bar, and commenced the practice of law. His legal career provided the professional foundation and public visibility that facilitated his entry into elective office and participation in national politics.

Dickinson’s personal life reflected his ties to influential Southern families. On December 8, 1835, he married Eliza A. Grantland in Milledgeville, Georgia. This marriage further extended his connections beyond Tennessee into Georgia’s political and social circles. Eliza died in 1838, leaving him a widower after only a few years of marriage. He later married Sallie Brickell Murfree, who was born in September 1821, thereby reinforcing his familial link to the Murfree family and making him both nephew and son-in-law to William Hardy Murfree.

Dickinson entered national politics as a supporter of Andrew Jackson. He was elected as a Jacksonian to the Twenty-third Congress, serving from March 4, 1833, to March 4, 1835, as the representative of Tennessee’s eighth congressional district. His first term placed him in the midst of major national debates of the Jacksonian era, including issues of federal power, economic policy, and westward expansion, and he contributed to the legislative process as part of the Jacksonian Democratic coalition.

After an interval out of Congress, Dickinson returned to the national legislature under a different political banner. He was elected as a Whig to the Twenty-eighth Congress, again representing Tennessee’s eighth district, and served from March 4, 1843, to March 4, 1845. His alignment with the Whig Party during this later term reflected the shifting political affiliations of the period, as questions of executive authority, internal improvements, and economic development realigned many Southern politicians. Throughout his two terms—one as a Jacksonian and one as a Whig—Dickinson participated in the democratic process during a significant period in American history, representing his constituents’ interests in the House of Representatives.

Dickinson’s congressional career was cut short by declining health. Unable to attend the last session of the Twenty-eighth Congress because of his failing condition, he returned to his family surroundings in Tennessee. He died on April 27, 1845, at “Grantland,” his father’s home near Murfreesboro, Tennessee, at the age of 36 years and 321 days. He was interred in the family burying ground on the estate. Though his life and national service were brief, his career illustrates the fluid party alignments and regional political networks that characterized Tennessee and Southern politics in the antebellum era.