Peter Hardeman Burnett

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Peter Hardeman Burnett (November 15, 1807 – May 17, 1895) was an American politician, the first elected governor of California from December 20, 1849, to January 9, 1851. Burnett was elected Governor almost one year before California's admission to the Union as the 31st state on September 9, 1850. Raised in a slave-owning family in Missouri, Burnett moved westward after his business career left him heavily in debt. Initially residing in Oregon Country, he became Supreme Judge of the Provisional Government of Oregon. While in Oregon politics, he pushed for the total exclusion of African Americans from the territory. He authored the "Burnett's lash law" that authorized the flogging of any free blacks who refused to leave Oregon; the law was deemed "unduly harsh" and went unenforced before voters rescinded it in 1845. In 1848, Burnett moved to California during the height of the California gold rush. He re-established his political career and was elected governor in 1849. Though Burnett himself...

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