Petigru, James Louis

Petigru, James Louis

(1789–1863) lawyer, politician; born in Abbeville District, S.C. A graduate of South Carolina College, he taught school while studying law, was admitted to the bar in 1812, and established a thriving practice in Charleston. An opponent of nullification, he served in the state legislature and as attorney general. He left public service in the 1830s, (with brief service as a federal district attorney, 1851–53) but remained for many years the state's leading lawyer. Although he opposed secession, he ardently supported the Confederacy when war came in 1861.