Representative Edward Isaac Golladay

Edward Isaac Golladay (September 9, 1830 – July 11, 1897) was an American politician, lawyer, and Confederate Army officer who served as a Democratic Representative from Tennessee in the United States Congress from 1871 to 1873. He represented Tennessee’s 5th congressional district in the Forty-second Congress, contributing to the legislative process during one term in office at a significant period in American history.

Golladay was born in Lebanon, Wilson County, Tennessee, on September 9, 1830. He attended the common schools of the area before enrolling at Cumberland University in his hometown. He graduated from the literary department of Cumberland University in 1848 and continued his studies at the Cumberland School of Law, from which he graduated in 1849. Shortly after completing his education, he married Lou Cossitt, the daughter of the Reverend Franceway R. Cossitt, who was the first president of Cumberland University, thereby aligning himself with one of the leading educational families in the region.

Admitted to the bar in 1849, Golladay commenced the practice of law in Lebanon, Tennessee. His legal career quickly intersected with public service. He was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives, serving in 1857 and 1858, where he began to establish himself as a Democratic political figure. In the presidential election of 1860, he further demonstrated his engagement in national politics by serving as a presidential elector on the Constitutional Union ticket of John Bell and Edward Everett, a ticket that sought to preserve the Union and avoid sectional conflict on the eve of the Civil War.

With the outbreak of the Civil War, Golladay entered Confederate military service. He enlisted in the 38th Tennessee Infantry Regiment at Camp Abington and was elected to the rank of captain. On October 26, 1861, he was elected lieutenant colonel and subsequently served in the Confederate Army as a colonel. During the course of the war, he was captured by Union forces in November 1863. He was later paroled and freed after signing an agreement that he would not engage in further rebellion against the government of the United States, enabling him eventually to resume his civilian and political life in the postwar era.

In the Reconstruction period, Golladay reentered politics as a member of the Democratic Party. He was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-second Congress and served in the U.S. House of Representatives from March 4, 1871, to March 3, 1873, representing Tennessee’s 5th congressional district. His tenure in Congress occurred during a critical phase of national reconciliation and the implementation of Reconstruction policies, and he participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of his Tennessee constituents during this transitional era. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1872 to the Forty-third Congress.

After leaving Congress, Golladay resumed the practice of law, maintaining offices in both Lebanon and Nashville, Tennessee. He continued his legal work and remained a figure of some prominence in state and local affairs, drawing on his long experience as a lawyer, legislator, and former member of Congress. His professional life after Congress reflected the broader pattern of many former Confederate officers and Democratic politicians who reintegrated into public and professional life in the post-Reconstruction South.

Edward Isaac Golladay died in Columbia, South Carolina, on July 11, 1897, while visiting his daughter, Fanny. He was 66 years old at the time of his death. His remains were returned to Tennessee, and he was interred at Cedar Grove Cemetery in Lebanon. His family was notable in regional politics; his brother, Jacob Golladay, served as a U.S. Representative from Kentucky, underscoring the family’s extended involvement in public service in the post–Civil War era.