Representative Morgan Rawls

Morgan Rawls (June 29, 1829 – October 18, 1906) was an American politician and lawyer, as well as an officer in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. A member of the Democratic Party representing Georgia, he contributed to the legislative process during one term in the United States Congress, serving at a time of profound political and social change in the post–Civil War South and participating in the democratic process on behalf of his constituents.

Rawls was born near Statesboro, Georgia, on June 29, 1829, in what was then a largely rural and agricultural region of the state. Little is recorded about his early childhood, but his upbringing in coastal Georgia placed him within the social and economic milieu that would later shape his political views and public service. In 1856 he moved to Guyton, Georgia, a small community in Effingham County, which became his long-term home and the base from which he developed his legal and political career.

During the American Civil War, Rawls entered military service with the Confederate States Army. He joined as an infantry captain and, over the course of the conflict, rose to the rank of colonel in the 54th Regiment of the Georgia Infantry. In this capacity he held a field command in one of Georgia’s infantry units, reflecting both his leadership role and his alignment with the Confederate cause. His wartime service formed a significant part of his public identity in the years that followed, as many former Confederate officers transitioned into political life during Reconstruction and the post-Reconstruction era.

Rawls’s political career began even before the end of the Civil War. He served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1863 to 1865, representing his state while it was part of the Confederacy. After the war, he continued to play an active role in Georgia’s political reconstruction. In 1865 he was a delegate to the state constitutional convention, participating in the effort to reestablish Georgia’s civil government and redefine its legal framework in the aftermath of defeat and emancipation. He returned to the Georgia House of Representatives for multiple additional terms, serving from 1868 to 1872, again from 1886 to 1889, and later from 1896 to 1904. Across these nonconsecutive periods of service, he was repeatedly entrusted by voters to represent their interests in the state legislature during some of the most turbulent decades in Georgia’s history.

At the national level, Rawls advanced to federal office during the early 1870s. In 1872 he was elected as a Democrat to represent Georgia’s 1st congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives for the 43rd Congress. His term began on March 4, 1873, and he took his seat as part of the Democratic effort to regain influence in the South during Reconstruction. However, his tenure was brief. His election was contested by Republican Andrew Sloan, who challenged the validity of the result. After the contest was adjudicated, Sloan was declared the rightful winner, and Rawls’s service in Congress ended on March 24, 1874. Though short, his time in the House placed him at the center of national debates over Reconstruction, federal authority, and the reintegration of the former Confederate states.

Following his contested congressional term, Rawls continued his involvement in federal legislative affairs through an important administrative role. He served in the office of the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, first from 1874 to 1882 and later from 1891 to 1895. In this capacity he worked within the institutional machinery of Congress, contributing to the management of House records, proceedings, and administrative functions. His repeated appointment to this position reflected the confidence placed in his experience and familiarity with legislative processes at the national level, even after his own elected service had ended.

In his later years, Rawls remained closely associated with Guyton, Georgia, where he had lived since the 1850s and which served as his home throughout his long public career. He continued to be active in state politics into the early twentieth century, with his final period in the Georgia House of Representatives concluding in 1904. Morgan Rawls died in Guyton on October 18, 1906. He was buried in Guyton Cemetery, leaving behind a legacy as a Confederate officer, state legislator, brief U.S. Representative, and long-serving House official who participated in both Georgia’s and the nation’s political life during and after the Civil War.