Humphreys, West Hughes

▪ American jurist

born Aug. 26, 1806, Montgomery County, Tenn., U.S.

died Oct. 16, 1882, near Nashville, Tenn.

      federal judge, the only U.S. government official impeached for supporting the secession of the Southern states during the American Civil War (1861–65).

      After serving as Tennessee attorney general and reporter of cases for the state Supreme Court (1839–51), Humphreys was appointed U.S. district judge in 1853 for the three districts in Tennessee. In 1862 he accepted appointment as district judge of Tennessee under the Confederate States of America, was impeached by the U.S. Senate, and was found guilty on June 26. He was acquitted of authorizing confiscation of the property of Andrew Johnson, U.S. military governor of Tennessee and later president, and that of John Catron, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. After the Civil War he became known as an advocate of Prohibition.

* * *