Charles Washington McClammy

Charles Washington McClammy (May 29, 1839 – February 26, 1896) was an American educator, Confederate Civil War veteran, planter, and Democratic politician who represented North Carolina’s 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1887 to 1891. Over the course of two terms in Congress, he participated in the legislative process during a significant period in American history and represented the interests of his constituents in eastern North Carolina.

McClammy was born on May 29, 1839, at Scotts Hill, North Carolina. He pursued an academic course in his youth and attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, from which he was graduated in 1859. His education at one of the South’s leading institutions prepared him for a career in teaching and public life at a time when the state and the nation were on the eve of civil conflict.

Following his graduation, McClammy began his professional life as an educator. He taught school from 1859 until 1861, when the outbreak of the American Civil War brought an abrupt change to his career. In 1861 he enlisted in the Confederate Army. Through successive promotions, he rose to the rank of major in the Third North Carolina Cavalry Regiment. He served throughout the Civil War, gaining military and leadership experience that would later inform his public service during the Reconstruction and post-Reconstruction eras.

After the war, McClammy returned to Scotts Hill and engaged in agricultural pursuits on his family lands. As a planter and farmer, he became part of the agrarian economy that dominated eastern North Carolina in the late nineteenth century. His involvement in agriculture kept him closely connected to the concerns of rural constituents, particularly issues related to land, labor, and postwar economic recovery.

McClammy soon entered state politics during the turbulent Reconstruction period. He was elected a member of the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1866, participating in the state’s early postwar legislative efforts. He later served in the North Carolina State Senate in 1871, continuing his work in shaping state policy during a time of political realignment and social change. These roles established him as a prominent Democratic figure in his region and provided a foundation for his subsequent national service.

In 1886, McClammy was elected as a Democrat to the Fiftieth Congress and took his seat on March 4, 1887, as the representative of North Carolina’s 3rd congressional district. He was reelected to the Fifty-first Congress, serving continuously from March 4, 1887, to March 3, 1891. During his two terms in the United States House of Representatives, he contributed to the legislative process as a member of the Democratic Party at a time when the nation grappled with issues such as economic policy, veterans’ affairs, and the evolving political order in the post-Reconstruction South. His service in Congress reflected the priorities of his district and the broader interests of North Carolina’s Democratic leadership.

McClammy was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1890 to the Fifty-second Congress. After leaving office on March 3, 1891, he resumed his agricultural pursuits at Scotts Hill, returning to the management of his plantation and local affairs. He remained a figure of local prominence, identified with both his wartime record and his years in state and national office.

On February 26, 1896, Charles Washington McClammy died in a boiler explosion on his plantation at Scotts Hill, North Carolina. His death brought a sudden end to the life of a former educator, Confederate officer, legislator, and congressman who had been closely tied to his native community. He was buried in the family cemetery at Scotts Hill, where his remains were interred among those of his relatives in the region where he had spent nearly his entire life.