29 Facts About Frederick Heiskell

Frederick Steidinger Heiskell was an American newspaper publisher, politician, and civic leader, active primarily in Knoxville, Tennessee, throughout much of the 19th century.

Frederick Heiskell cofounded the Knoxville Register, which during its early years was the city's only newspaper, and operated a printing firm that published a number of early important books on Tennessee history and law.

Frederick Heiskell served one term in the Tennessee Senate, and briefly served as Mayor of Knoxville in 1835.

Frederick Heiskell was a trustee, organizer, or financial supporter of numerous schools and civic organizations.

Frederick Heiskell began working in the printing shop of his brother, John, in Winchester, Virginia, in 1810.

Frederick Heiskell married Eliza Brown, a sister of Knoxville Latin teacher Hugh Brown, on July 17,1816, in Jonesborough, Tennessee.

Frederick Heiskell was responsible for the paper's political commentary, while Brown focused on its literary content.

Frederick Heiskell used the columns of the Register to support education and civic advancement in Knoxville.

Frederick Heiskell helped finance this latter institution, which later became the East Tennessee Female Institute, and served both as a professor and as one of its trustees from its founding in 1827 until his death in 1882.

Frederick Heiskell was a cofounder of the Knoxville Library Company, and served as the first president of the Knoxville Typographical Society.

Frederick Heiskell was first elected to Knoxville's Board of Aldermen in 1824, and served in this capacity through 1831.

Frederick Heiskell returned to the Board in 1835, and briefly served as mayor that year.

Frederick Heiskell was appointed by Speaker Josiah M Anderson to a three-man "engrossment" committee, which was tasked with finalizing bills before they were sent to the House.

Frederick Heiskell was appointed to the Board of Directors for the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad in 1852, and was elected president of the Knox County Agricultural Society in 1856.

Frederick Heiskell remained politically active chairing an American Party convention in Knoxville in October 1855.

Frederick Heiskell believed such a convention would isolate fanatical secessionists and allow moderates a greater voice, and give Southern states an opportunity to explain their grievances to the Northern states.

Frederick Heiskell campaigned against secession throughout the first half of 1861.

In February 1862, Frederick Heiskell exchanged "angry words" with Colonel Danville Leadbetter when he was denied leave to visit Unionist leader William "Parson" Brownlow, who had been jailed in Knoxville.

Frederick Heiskell expressed support for President Andrew Johnson, and vowed to seek compensation for East Tennessee Unionists whose property had been taken or destroyed by the Union Army.

Frederick Heiskell opposed black suffrage, though he had accepted emancipation as an outcome of the war.

Frederick Heiskell defended his endorsement of McClellan in 1864, stating that while he had "full faith and confidence in Mr Lincoln's patriotism," he had preferred McClellan for his military experience.

Frederick Heiskell blamed the lopsided loss on voter intimidation, and accused Brownlow of meddling in the election.

The feud between Brownlow and Frederick Heiskell flared up again in April 1866, when the Whig accused Frederick Heiskell of calling Brownlow a "damned liar" at a rally in Knoxville.

In May 1866, Frederick Heiskell published another editorial in which he accused Brownlow of exaggerating his "sufferings" at the hands of Confederate authorities in order to exploit northern sympathy and sell books.

Frederick Heiskell helped organize the state's delegation to the National Union Convention in Philadelphia in August 1866.

Frederick Heiskell remained only marginally active in politics in later years.

Hugh Brown Frederick Heiskell was among the "49ers" who moved to California during the Gold Rush in the late 1840s.

Frederick Heiskell spent his final years living with his daughter in Rogersville, where he died in 1882.

Frederick Heiskell was interred in Rogersville, though his family had made plans to have him reinterred at Ebenezer Cemetery near Knoxville.