Honorable Robert White | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Col._Robert_White.jpg) Portrait of Robert White in later life | |
| 8th Attorney General of West Virginia | |
| In office 1877–1881 | |
| Governor | Henry Mason Mathews |
| Preceded by | Henry Mason Mathews |
| Succeeded by | Cornelius Clarkson Watts |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 7, 1833 Romney, Virginia (now West Virginia), United States |
| Died | December 12, 1915 (aged 82) Wheeling, West Virginia, United States |
| Resting place | Greenwood Cemetery |
| Political party | Democratic Party |
| Spouse | Ellen E. Vass |
| Relations |
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| Children |
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| Parent(s) | John Baker White (father) Frances Ann Streit (mother) |
| Residence(s) | Romney, West Virginia; 7 13th Street, 125 14th Street, and Bae Mar Place Wheeling, West Virginia |
| Profession | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Confederate States of America |
| Branch/service |  Confederate States Army |
| Years of service | 1861–65 |
| Rank | Colonel (1864–65) |
| Unit | Company I of the 13th Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment (1861–63) |
| Commands | 41st Battalion Virginia Cavalry (1863–64) 23rd Virginia Volunteer Cavalry Regiment (1864–65) |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
Robert White (February 7, 1833 – December 12, 1915) was an American military officer, lawyer, and politician in the U.S. state of West Virginia. White served as Attorney General of West Virginia (1877–1881) and served two terms in the West Virginia House of Delegates, representing Ohio County in 1885 and 1891.
Born in 1833 in Romney, Virginia (present-day West Virginia), White was the son of Hampshire County Court Clerk John Baker White and his second wife, Frances Ann Streit White. He was educated at the Romney Classical Institute, worked in his father's clerking office for six years, and studied jurisprudence under John White Brockenbrough at his Lexington Law School. White was admitted to the bar in 1854 and practiced law in Romney.
Prior to the outbreak of the American Civil War, White was commissioned a captain of the Frontier Riflemen, which later became Company I of the 13th Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment, commanded by Colonel A. P. Hill in 1861. In 1864, he was commissioned as a colonel in command of the 23rd Virginia Volunteer Cavalry Regiment and served in that capacity until the unit disbanded in April 1865. Following the war, White returned to Romney and practiced law with John Jeremiah Jacob. He devoted his efforts to bringing economic development to the South Branch Potomac River Valley, which had been desolated during the war. White was one of nine members to revive the Romney Literary Society following the war, and in 1870, the organization successfully secured the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind for Romney. He served three terms on the school's board of regents. White also established the South Branch Railway Company and was its president until 1877.
White was elected as West Virginia's attorney general in 1876 and served from 1877 until 1881. He was charged with several important lawsuits, among the most prominent being the state's pursuance of tax liabilities from railroad companies. White argued the case before the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, which ruled in White's favor and ultimately enriched the West Virginia state treasury. He successfully secured the extradition of Elihu Gregg from Pennsylvania after Gregg was accused of burning the Preston County courthouse and fled. In Kitzmiller v. Williams, White argued in favor of the rights of former Confederate soldiers before the Supreme Court of the United States and secured a favorable verdict. Following his tenure as attorney general, White served two terms in the West Virginia House of Delegates. In 1885, he represented the state at the Washington Monument's dedication. White subsequently served two terms as the city solicitor of Wheeling, and was later counsel for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company.
In his later life, White was involved in Confederate memorial activities. He was a member of the Confederate Memorial Association board of trustees, the chief officer of the West Virginia Division of the United Confederate Veterans, and served as commander with the rank of major-general in the national organization. White was chairman of the construction committee for the Confederate Memorial Institute's Battle Abbey in Richmond. He was a Freemason and served as Grand Master of the state of West Virginia in 1875. White attended the 100th anniversary of the burial of George Washington in 1899 and was chosen by the Grand Lodge of Virginia as the Grand Marshal of the Masonic ceremonies while attending the observance at Mount Vernon. He also became a noted lecturer and orator in his later years. Following a prolonged illness, White died in Wheeling in 1915.