Howell Cobb

Howell Cobb
President of the Confederate States Provisional Congress
In office February 4, 1861 – February 18, 1862
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Position abolished
22nd United States Secretary of the Treasury
In office March 7, 1857 – December 8, 1860
President	James Buchanan
Preceded by	James Guthrie
Succeeded by	Philip Thomas
40th Governor of Georgia
In office November 5, 1851 – November 9, 1853
Preceded by	George Towns
Succeeded by	Herschel Johnson
19th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
In office December 22, 1849 [a] – March 3, 1851
Preceded by	Robert Winthrop
Succeeded by	Linn Boyd
Leader of the House Democratic Caucus
In office December 4, 1843 – March 4, 1845
Preceded by	John Winston Jones
Succeeded by	Linn Boyd
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 6th district
In office March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857
Preceded by	Junius Hillyer
Succeeded by	James Jackson
In office March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1851
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Junius Hillyer
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's at-large district
In office March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1845 Seat 5
Preceded by	James Meriwether
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born	(1815-09-07)September 7, 1815 Cherry Hill, Georgia, U.S.
Died	October 9, 1868(1868-10-09) (aged 53) New York City, New York, U.S.
Political party	Democratic (Before 1851; 1853–1868) Constitutional Union (1851–1853)[b]
Relatives	Thomas Cobb (brother) Sarah Johnson Cocke (niece)
Education	University of Georgia (BA)
Military service
Allegiance	Confederate States
Branch/service	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861–1865
Rank	Major General
Unit	Army of Northern Virginia
Commands	Cobb's Brigade District of Georgia and Florida
Battles/wars	American Civil War

Howell Cobb (September 7, 1815 – October 9, 1868) was an American and later Confederate political figure. A southern Democrat, Cobb was a five-term member of the United States House of Representatives and the speaker of the House from 1849 to 1851. He also served as the 40th governor of Georgia (1851–1853) and as a secretary of the treasury under President James Buchanan (1857–1860).

Cobb is, however, best known as one of the founders of the Confederacy, having served as the President of the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States where delegates of the Southern slave states declared that they had seceded from the United States and created the Confederate States of America.

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