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North Carolina's Governors
Warren Winslow (1810-1862) served as governor for less than one month, the shortest term of any of the state's chief executives. Born in Fayetteville, he graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1827 and returned to Fayetteville to set up his law practice. Winslow, a Democrat, was caught up in that party's resurgence and was elected to the State Senate in 1854. Intraparty maneuverings and compromises placed him in the position of speaker. He had barely assumed that role when Governor David S. Reid accepted election to a vacant U.S. Senate seat. Reid turned over duties to Winslow who, as Speaker, qualified as governor on December 6, 1854. Thomas Bragg, however, had been elected to the office in November and was to be inaugurated in January. Warren Winslow was governor of North Carolina for twenty-five days. Winslow was elected to the U.S. House in 1855 but took little role in the proceedings, quietly defending southern rights on constitutional issues. He left the House with the close of the 1861 session. His next service was as an advisor and agent of Governor John Ellis. In April 1861, Winslow negotiated the surrender of the arsenal at Fayetteville to the state. He was named chairman of the Military and Naval Board. When forts at Hatteras and ultimately the entire northeastern coast succumbed to Union blockade, many blamed Winslow, damaging his influence and prestige. Winslow was a delegate to the Convention of 1861 that voted for secession and which acted as the state's legal counsel for the first year of the war. A few months after the debacle at Hatteras, he resigned his seat and retired to Fayetteville. He died less than a year later and was buried in Cross Creek Cemetery.
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