Edward Hazzard East (October 1, 1830 – November 12, 1904) was an American attorney, judge, and politician. He served as Secretary of State for the state of Tennessee from 1862 to 1865, having been appointed by Andrew Johnson, the state's military governor under the Union Army occupation during the Civil War. East briefly served as the state's acting governor during the interim between Johnson's inauguration as U.S. Vice President on March 4, 1865, and the inauguration of the state's "elected" governor, William G. Brownlow, on April 5, 1865. Life and career East was born in Davidson County, Tennessee, one of ten children of Edward Hyde East and Celia Buchanan East. His paternal grandfather, Benjamin East, had migrated from England in the 18th century. His father served as a justice of the peace for Davidson County, and was a supporter of Whig presidential candidate Hugh Lawson White in 1836. East enrolled in Washington Institute in Nashville in the late 1840s, and graduated with a degree in literature in 1850. He then studied law at the Cumberland University Law School (now the Cumberland School of Law), graduating with a Bachelor of Laws in 1854. Afterward, he practiced law in Nashville. In 1859, East, a lifelong Whig, was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives as a member of the Opposition Party (which the state's Whigs had formed after the collapse of the national Whig Party). In the months leading up to the Civil War, East steadfastly opposed secession. When the state began to align itself with the Confederacy, he resigned his seat. While he supported the Union, he refused to take up arms against the South, and retired from public life. In March 1862, the Union Army occupied Nashville, and former governor Andrew Johnson was appointed military governor of the state. Shortly afterward, Johnson set up a cabinet: East was appointed Secretary of State, Joseph S. Fowler was appointed Comptroller, and Horace Maynard was appointed Attorney General. When Johnson was elected Vice President on Lincoln's ticket in November 1864, authorities realized there would be a month between Johnson's inauguration as Vice President on March 4, 1865, and the inauguration of William G. Brownlow as governor on April 5. Several of Lincoln's advisors suggested he appoint Brownlow military governor for this interim, but Lincoln chose to allow East to continue as acting governor. The official Tennessee Blue Book does not recognize East's governorship