United States Congressman from Virginia

(1803-62) Born near Lawrenceville, Brunswick County, Va., he studied law, was admitted to the bar, and began a law practice in Petersburg, Dinwiddie County, Va. Meade served in the Virginia State Senate, 1835-1838; and was a U.S. Congressman, 1847-53. President Franklin Buchanan appointed him Minister to Brazil in 1857, and he served in that position until 1861. Returning to Virginia, Meade devoted himself to the Confederacy for the remainder of his life dying at Petersburg, on April 20, 1862. He is interred at Old Blandford Cemetery, Petersburg, Va.

Signature With Place: 6 1/4 x 1 1/2, in ink, R.K. Meade, Petersburg, Va.

WBTS Trivia: Built in 1736, Old Blandford Church is the oldest building in Petersburg. During the War Between the States the church served as an important telegraph station, and it was used as a field hospital, most notably after the Battle of the Crater, on July 30, 1864. The church is part of a memorial to Confederate soldiers who died during the war, and is located adjacent to Blandford Cemetery, one of the oldest, largest and historically significant cemeteries in Virginia.