Wikipedia:Today's featured article/June 7, 2013

James Garrard (1749–1822) was the second governor of Kentucky. He served from 1796 to 1804 and was the last to be elected to consecutive terms until 1999. A Revolutionary War veteran, he held several local offices and unsuccessfully tried to exclude slavery from Kentucky's first constitution. His 1796 election as governor exposed ambiguity in the state constitution, prompting another constitutional convention in 1799. As governor, he opposed the Alien and Sedition Acts, favored passage of the Kentucky Resolutions, and lobbied for public education, militia and prison reforms, business subsidies, and legislation favorable to debtors. He became the first resident of the state's first governor's mansion when it was completed in 1798. A Democratic-Republican, he applauded the Louisiana Purchase as a means of dealing with the closure of the port at New Orleans to U.S. goods. Garrard, a Baptist minister, was expelled from the church in 1802 when his Secretary of State, Harry Toulmin, persuaded him to adopt some doctrines of Unitarianism. After leaving office, he engaged in agricultural and commercial pursuits. Garrard County, Kentucky, was named in his honor. (Full article...)

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