David Peter Lewis, governor of Alabama, was born in Charlotte county, Va., about 1820; son of Peter C. and Mary Smith (Buster) Lewis. His father was of Welch and his mother of English ancestry. He removed to Madison county, Ala., with his parents in childhood. He was well educated; studied law in Huntsville, Ala., and afterward practised in Lawrence county. He represented Lawrence county in the state constitutional convention of 1861, and voted against secession, but eventually signed the ordinance as passed. He was elected to the Confederate provincial congress at Montgomery by the convention, but resigned his seat. He was appointed judge of the circuit court of Alabama by Governor Shorter in 1863, and after holding that position several months, he passed through the army lines and reached Nashville, Tenn., where he remained until the close of the war. He returned to Alabama in 1865, settled at Huntsville in the practice of his profession and was elected governor of Alabama by the Republican party, serving, 1872-74. He never married. He died at Huntsville, Ala., July 3, 1884.

The Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans 1904

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