Later Career
Following his service as governor, Morehead resumed his legal practice in Frankfort, Kentucky. In March 1837, he was commissioned by Governor James Clark to act as an agent for the state, selling bonds to fund internal improvements. He returned to the state House from 1837 to 1838, representing Franklin County. He was president of the Kentucky Board of Internal Improvements from 1838 to 1841, and in 1839, he and John Speed Smith were chosen as commissioners to the state of Ohio to secure the return of Kentucky-owned slaves as property of their masters. They were successful in this endeavor.
Learned in Kentucky history, Morehead published An Address in Commemoration of the First Settlement of Kentucky, which contained original information regarding the early settlement of Boonesborough, Kentucky, in 1840. In 1846, he published another book, Practice in Civil Actions and Proceedings at Law.
In 1841, Morehead was appointed to the U.S. Senate and served from March 4, 1841 to March 3, 1847. There he was chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and the Committee on Retrenchment. During his service in the Senate, he defended a federal bank bill and opposed the annexation of Texas, though he supported the U.S.-Mexican War after it began. He was also a staunch supporter of fellow Kentuckian Henry Clay.
After his time in Congress, he continued the practice of law in Covington, Kentucky until his death. He was interred in the State lot of Frankfort Cemetery, Frankfort, Kentucky. The city of Morehead, Kentucky was named after him.
Read more about this topic: James Turner Morehead (Kentucky)
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