Jonathan Dayton

Infobox Officeholder
name =Jonathan Dayton


imagesize =200px
small

caption =
order =4th
office =Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
term_start =December 7, 1795
term_end =March 4, 1799
president =George Washington
John Adams
predecessor =Frederick Muhlenberg
successor =Theodore Sedgwick
order2 =Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New Jersey's At-large district
term_start2 =March 4, 1791
term_end2 =March 3, 1799
predecessor2 =James Schureman
Elias Boudinot
successor2 =Mark Thomson
John Condit
order3 =United States Senator
from New Jersey
term_start3 =March 4, 1799
term_end3 =March 3, 1805
predecessor3 =Richard Stockton
successor3 =Aaron Kitchell
birth_date =October 16, 1760
birth_place =Elizabethtown, New Jersey
death_date =October 9, 1824 (aged 63)
death_place =Elizabethtown, New Jersey
nationality =
party =Pro-Administration
Federalist
otherparty =
spouse =Susan Williamson
relations =
children =
residence =
alma_mater =College of New Jersey
occupation =
profession =Law
net worth =
religion =Presbyterian


website =
footnotes =

Jonathan Dayton (October 16 1760ndash October 9 1824) was an American politician from the U.S. state of New Jersey. He was the youngest person to sign the United States Constitution and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, serving as the third Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and later the U.S. Senate. Dayton was arrested in 1807 for treason in connection with Aaron Burr's conspiracy, he was never tried, but his national political career never recovered.

Dayton was born in Elizabethtown (now Elizabeth) in New Jersey. He was the son of Elias Dayton, a merchant who was prominent in local politics. He graduated in 1776 from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University). During the Revolutionary War Dayton served under his father in the 3rd New Jersey Regiment and attained the rank of captain by the age of 19.

After the war, Dayton studied law and established a practice, dividing his time between land speculation, law, and politics. After serving as a delegate to the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention (of which he was the youngest member, at the age of 26 [Abeka United States History: Heritage of Freedom, page 126] ), he became a prominent Federalist legislator. He was a member of the New Jersey General Assembly from 1786-1787, and again in 1790, and served in the New Jersey State Council (now the New Jersey Senate) in 1790.

Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1789, he did not take his seat, but was elected and took his seat in 1791. He served as speaker for the Fourth and Fifth Congress. Like most Federalists, he supported the fiscal policies of Alexander Hamilton, and suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion. He supported the Louisiana Purchase and opposed the repeal of the Judiciary Act of 1801.

Dayton met with Aaron Burr in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and became involved in a "conspiracy" in which Burr later had been accused of intending to conquer parts of what is now the western United States. (This was never proven.) An illness prevented Dayton from accompanying Burr's aborted 1806 expedition, but in 1807 Dayton was arrested for treason. He was released and never brought to trial but his national political career never recovered.

He married Susan Williamson and had two daughters but their marriage date is unknown.

After resuming his political career in New Jersey, he died in 1824 in his hometown and was interred in a vault in St. John's Episcopal Churchyard in Elizabeth.

Dayton, Ohio

The city of Dayton, Ohio, was named after him because he owned 250,000 acres (1,000 km²) of land in Ohio and because he supported the building of the Miami Canal without hesitation. [ [http://www.ci.dayton.oh.us/html/dayton_facts.asp Brief History] , Dayton, Ohio. Accessed August 20, 2007.] However, Jonathan Dayton never set foot in the city.

Legacy

The Jonathan Dayton High School in Springfield Township, Union County, New Jersey, was named for him.

Political career

* New Jersey General Assembly, 1786–1787, 1790
** Speaker, 1790
* Delegate to Federal Constitutional Convention, 1787
* Delegate to Continental Congress, 1787–1788
* New Jersey State Council, 1790
* United States House of Representatives, March 4, 1791 – March 4, 1799
** Speaker of the House, Fourth and Fifth Congresses
** Chairman of Committee on Elections, Third Congress
* United States Senate, March 4, 1799 – March 4, 1805
* New Jersey Assembly, 1814–1815

Notes

External links

* [http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/dayan-deamer.html#R9M0IULQ6 Jonathan Dayton] at The Political Graveyard
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=4714 Jonathan Dayton] at Find A Grave

Persondata
NAME= Dayton, Jonathan
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=American politician from the U.S. state of New Jersey
DATE OF BIRTH=October 16, 1760
PLACE OF BIRTH=Elizabethtown, New Jersey
DATE OF DEATH=October 9, 1824
PLACE OF DEATH=Elizabethtown, New Jersey