Edward Carrington Venable

Edward Carrington Venable
Edward Carrington Venable
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives; from Virginia's 4th district
	In office; March 4, 1889 – September 23, 1890
Preceded by	William E. Gaines
Succeeded by	John M. Langston
Personal details
Born	January 31, 1853; Prince Edward County, Virginia
Died	December 8, 1908 (aged 55); Baltimore, Maryland
Resting place	Blandford Cemetery, Petersburg, Virginia
Party	Democratic
Alma mater	University of Virginia
Profession	Teacher, businessman

Edward Carrington Venable (January 31, 1853 – December 8, 1908) was a U.S. representative from Virginia.

Biography

Born near Hampden-Sydney, in Prince Edward, Virginia, Venable attended the local school, McCabe's University High School, Petersburg, Virginia, and the University of Virginia at Charlottesville. He taught school for three years, and then returned to Petersburg in 1876 and engaged in mercantile pursuits.

He served as delegate to the Democratic State convention in 1886, and presented credentials as a Democratic Member-elect to the Fifty-first Congress and served from March 4, 1889, to September 23, 1890, when he was succeeded by John M. Langston, who successfully contested his election.

After losing reelection, Venable resumed his former business pursuits. He died in Baltimore, Maryland, December 8, 1908 and was interred in Blandford Cemetery, Petersburg, Virginia.

Edmund Carrington Venable was a formative figure in the early development of the Sons of the American Revolution at both the state and national levels. On February 10, 1890, he joined several members of the Virginia congressional delegation at the U.S. Capitol for the first organizational conference to establish the Virginia Society, where he was elected Secretary and appointed, with Gen. William H. F. Lee, to draft the Society’s initial Constitution, By‑Laws, and slate of officers. He continued in this leadership role throughout the spring, signing the June 26 circular inviting Virginians to become charter members and later being elected one of the original Managers when the Society was formally organized at Richmond on July 7, 1890. Venable also played an early role in the formation of the District of Columbia Society and is recorded as National SAR Member No. 1830, listed with the D.C. Society. His own eligibility derived from his great‑grandfather, Col. Samuel Woodson Venable of Prince Edward County, an Ensign in Watkins’s Troop of Horse noted for its service in the Southern Department and its distinguished conduct at Guilford Court House.^[1]

Electoral history

1888; Venable was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives with 43.08% of the vote, defeating Republicans John Mercer Langston and R. W. Arnold but the election was contested and Langston was seated.