Leopold Copeland Parker Cowper

Leopold Copeland Parker Cowper (* March 11, 1811 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia; † July 17, 1875 in Macclesfield, Virginia) was an American politician and lawyer, who was Lieutenant Governor of Virginia during the Civil War and afterwards.

Life

Leopold Copeland Parker Cowper was born in Isle of Wight County, the fourth son of Navy Captain William Cowper, who had formerly served on the USS Constellation. William Cowper had later served as captain of the frigate USS Baltimore, was exempted from the regular service since 1801. Leopold's parents, who had married in 1802, one year separated after his birth. Apparently he did not have to sign up as a participant of the trading house John Cowper & Co bankruptcy, but squandered the interim business successes in the Caribbean after returning home, even though his father had him financially. In January 1817 was Leopold Cowper's mother, Ann Pierce Parker Cowper ( 1775-1849 ), the daughter of former Congressman Josiah Parker ( † 1810), after a filed petition, the occupied physical and psychological abuse, a final divorce by the Virginia General Assembly obtain and was awarded the sole custody of their five sons. The petition was listed evidence that William Cowper had his wife sought after family heritage and she had beaten with Leopold Copeland Parker during pregnancy.

After schooling and studying Cowper practiced as a lawyer in Portsmouth and Norfolk County. As a politician of the Whigs he sat two consecutive terms in the Virginia House of Delegates, 1847-1848 and 1848-1849.

In May 1863 Cowper was elected as a candidate for the office of Lieutenant Governor for the controlled by the Union territory of Virginia under the so-called Restored government of Virginia, there to replace a candidate of Berkeley County, who in turn had withdrawn his candidacy itself. Although candidates for the actual governorship and the Attorney General had no opponent, Cowper was in turn challenged by Gilbert S. Miner, whom he beat in the election on 28 May 1863. Even when Cowper was unable to obtain due to the chaos of war his new office until January 1864 itself, Governor Francis Harrison Pierpont put him as Lieutenant Governor on November 17, 1863, as until then representing him previous Lieutenant Governor, Daniel Polsley, resigned from his post.

As Vice Governor Cowper became a state senate, who had to have just six districts: Accomack and Northampton Counties, Alexandria and Fairfax Counties, Elizabeth City County and the City of Hampton, the Loudoun County, the city of Norfolk, and the now-defunct Norfolk and Princess Anne counties.

Leopold Copeland Parker Cowper died in 1875 at the age of 64 years, unmarried and without issue. He was buried in Macclesfield, on the family estate in Smithfield in Isle of Wight County.