Thomas S. Bocock

Thomas S. Bocock, lawyer and politician, was born in present-day Appomattox Co. (then part of Buckingham Co.) on 18 May 1815. In 1846, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and served there until 1861. In 1859, Bocock was nominated for Speaker of the House, but withdrew after eight weeks of debate and multiple ballots failed to elect a speaker. He served in the unicameral Provisional Confederate Congress (July 1861-Feb. 1862) and as the only Speaker of the Confederate House of Representatives (Feb. 1862-Mar. 1865). After the Civil War, Bocock resumed his law practice and remained active in politics. He died at his nearby home, Wildway, on 5 Aug. 1891 and was buried in the family cemetery there.