Representative Julian Hartridge

Julian Hartridge (September 9, 1829 – January 8, 1879) was an American politician and lawyer from Georgia who served in both the Confederate Congress and the United States Congress. A member of the Democratic Party representing Georgia, he contributed to the legislative process during two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, participating in the democratic process and representing the interests of his constituents during a significant period in American history.

Hartridge was born in Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia, on September 9, 1829. He received his early education in Savannah at Chatham Academy and later attended the Montpelier Institute, a noted school in Georgia at the time. Demonstrating academic promise, he pursued higher education in the North and graduated from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1848. He then studied law at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, completing his legal education in 1850.

After leaving Harvard, Hartridge returned to his native Georgia and was admitted to the bar in 1851. He established a law practice in Savannah, where he quickly became a prominent member of the local bar. From 1854 to 1858 he served as Solicitor of the Eastern District of Georgia, a prosecutorial position that gave him substantial courtroom experience and increased his visibility in public affairs. His legal work and growing reputation naturally led him into elective office.

Hartridge entered formal politics as a member of the Georgia House of Representatives, serving from 1858 to 1859. With the secession crisis and the coming of the Civil War, he aligned with the Confederate cause and was chosen to represent Georgia in the First Confederate Congress and subsequently in the Second Confederate Congress. In addition to his legislative service for the Confederacy, he spent one year in the Confederate Army as a lieutenant in the Chatham Artillery, a Savannah-based unit, combining military duty with his ongoing political responsibilities during the conflict.

Following the end of the Civil War and the period of Reconstruction, Hartridge resumed his legal career in Savannah and reentered public life as Georgia was restored to full participation in the Union. He was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-fourth Congress and was reelected to the Forty-fifth Congress, serving in the United States House of Representatives from March 4, 1875, until his death on January 8, 1879. His tenure in Congress coincided with the turbulent postwar years, and he took part in debates over Reconstruction, Southern affairs, and national reconciliation. Among his recorded activities was his participation in the discussion of the disturbances at Hamburg, South Carolina, in 1876, where he delivered remarks that were later published alongside those of Representative Lucius Q. C. Lamar of Mississippi.

Hartridge died in office in Washington, D.C., on January 8, 1879, during his second term in the U.S. House of Representatives. Contemporary accounts, including an article in the New York Times, reported that he was much admired by colleagues on both sides of the aisle for his character and conduct. His funeral in the Hall of the House of Representatives was a major public event, attended by the President of the United States, members of the Cabinet, Justices of the Supreme Court, and numerous other dignitaries. Following the ceremonies in Washington, his remains were returned to Georgia, and he was buried in Laurel Grove Cemetery in Savannah. His family continued to play a notable role in American cultural and civic life; the French-speaking American author Julien Green and Savannah preservationist Walter Hartridge were among his grandsons.