Emerson Etheridge
| Henry Emerson Etheridge | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee's 9th district |
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In office March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1857 |
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| Preceded by | Isham G. Harris |
| Succeeded by | John D.C. Atkins |
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In office March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861 |
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| Preceded by | John D.C. Atkins |
| Succeeded by | Barbour Lewis |
| Clerk of the United States House of Representatives | |
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In office July 1861 – December 1863 |
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| Preceded by | John W. Forney |
| Succeeded by | Edward McPherson |
| Member of the Tennessee Senate | |
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In office 1869-1871 |
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| Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives | |
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In office 1845-1847 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
September 28, 1819 Currituck County, North Carolina, United States |
| Died | October 21, 1902 (aged 83) Dresden, Tennessee, United States |
| Resting place | Mount Vernon Cemetery Sharon, Tennessee |
| Political party |
Whig Know Nothing Opposition |
| Spouse(s) | Fannie N. Bell Etheridge |
| Children | Emma Etheridge Moran, Bell W. Etheridge |
| Profession | Attorney |
Henry Emerson Etheridge (September 28, 1819 – October 21, 1902) was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for Tennessee's 9th congressional district from 1853 to 1857, and again from 1859 to 1861. He also served one term in the Tennessee House of Representatives (1845–1847) and one term in the Tennessee Senate (1869–1871). After Tennessee seceded in 1861, he was elected Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, serving until 1863.
One of the most powerful and eloquent speakers of his day, Etheridge was one of the few Southern congressmen to oppose the expansion of slavery and denounce Southern secession on the eve of the Civil War. Though a Southern Unionist, he criticized Abraham Lincoln over the Emancipation Proclamation. In the years following the war, Etheridge was a bitter critic of Governor William G. Brownlow, and ran against Brownlow for governor in a violent campaign in 1867.
After leaving the state senate in 1871, Etheridge remained active in state Republican Party politics. He was offered (but rejected) the party's nomination for governor in 1878, and ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 1884. He worked as the Surveyor of Customs at Memphis in the early 1890s.
Etheridge was born in Currituck County, North Carolina, the son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Harvey) Etheridge. In the early 1830s, he moved with his parents to Weakley County, Tennessee, where they settled on a 1,000-acre (400 ha) farm near the community of Sharon. Though initially a teacher, he studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1840. He married Fannie N. Bell and they had three children: a son (Bell Etheridge), a daughter (Emma Etheridge Moran), and a third child who died in infancy in 1854.
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