Robert M. T. Hunter
Robert Mercer Taliaferro Hunter (April 21, 1809 – July 18, 1887) was an American lawyer, politician and planter. He was a
U.S. representative (1837–1843, 1845–1847),
speaker of the House (1839–1841), and
U.S. senator (1847–1861). During the
American Civil War, Hunter became the
Confederate States Secretary of State (1861–1862) and then a
Confederate senator (1862–1865) and critic of President
Jefferson Davis. After the war, Hunter failed to win re-election to the U.S. Senate, but did serve as the
treasurer of Virginia (1874–1880) before retiring to his farm. After fellow
Democrat Grover Cleveland was elected President of the United States in 1884, Hunter became the customs collector for the port of
Tappahannock until his death.
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