William Wyatt Bibb | |
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1st Governor of Alabama | |
In office December 14, 1819 – July 10, 1820 Territory: March 6, 1817– December 14, 1819 |
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Preceded by | Position established |
Succeeded by | Thomas Bibb |
United States Senator from Georgia |
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In office November 6, 1813 – November 9, 1816 |
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Preceded by | William B. Bulloch |
Succeeded by | George Troup |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's at-large district | |
In office January 26, 1807 – November 6, 1813 |
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Preceded by | Thomas Spalding |
Succeeded by | Alfred Cuthbert |
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives | |
In office 1803-1805 |
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Personal details | |
Born |
Amelia County, Virginia |
October 2, 1781
Died | July 10, 1820 Elmore County, Alabama |
(aged 38)
Political party | Democratic-Republican |
Spouse(s) | Mary Freeman |
Alma mater |
College of William & Mary; University of Pennsylvania |
Signature |
William Wyatt Bibb (October 2, 1781 – July 10, 1820) was a United States Senator from Georgia and the first Governor of the U.S. state of Alabama. Bibb County, Alabama, and Bibb County, Georgia, are named for him.
He was a member of the Democratic-Republican political party. Bibb served as governor of the Alabama Territory from August 1817 to December 1819, and as the first elected governor of the state of Alabama from December 1819 to his death on July 10, 1820.
Bibb was born in Amelia County, Virginia, and around 1784 moved with his family to Georgia. After having attended the College of William and Mary and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, he was awarded an M.D. degree in 1801. He returned to Georgia and began practicing medicine in Petersburg. In 1803, he married Mary Freeman.
Bibb's first office was as a member of the Georgia state House of Representatives from 1803 to 1805. He was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the Ninth United States Congress to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Thomas Spalding, and was reelected four times, serving until November 6, 1813. He was then elected by the Georgia General Assembly (state legislature), to the United States Senate to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of the nationally known and presidential candidate William H. Crawford and served until November 9, 1816.