ONLINE EXHIBIT
Rufus Ayers
1849 - 1926
Rufus Ayers was born on May 20, 1849 in Bedford
County. His family moved to Goodson (now Bristol) in 1855 where
he attended Goodson Academy until it was closed at the start
of the Civil War. At age 14, Rufus ran away and joined the Confederate
Army. After the war, Ayers began to study law and, in 1875, became
the Scott County Commonwealth Attorney. In 1876, he obtained
a charter for a railroad from Bristol to Big Stone Gap. Ayers
quickly became one of the state's foremost industrial leaders.
Ayers became involved with
politics as a member of the Democratic State Committee of the
Ninth Congressional District in 1883. The next year, he was Vice-President
of the Virginia delegation to the Chicago Convention, where Grover
Cleveland was nominated. In 1885, Ayers was elected Attorney
General of Virginia. As Attorney General, Ayers went to jail
as part of his fight on the state debt issue. He had his case
heard before the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in his favor.
