Politician. He served in the Maryland state legislature from 1837 to 1839, was appointed to a post in the United States Treasury Department by President Martin Van Buren, and named as Postmaster of the District of Columbia by President Franklin Pierce. He also served as the mayor of Washington, D.C. from 1858 to 1861. In 1861, when the civil war broke out, Congress enacted a law requiring all officers of national, state and municipal governments to take an oath of allegiance to the United States. He declared there was no necessity for his taking the oath when he had already subscribed to it when inaugurated as mayor and he refused to take the oath. He was arrested under orders of Secretary of State William H. Seward but was subsequently released on the condition that he resign his office despite the fact that there was no evidence of any complicity or sympathy on his part with the confederacy. In addition to public office, he served on the inaugural committees for presidents James Buchanan, Abraham Lincoln, and Grover Cleveland.
Politician. He served in the Maryland state legislature from 1837 to 1839, was appointed to a post in the United States Treasury Department by President Martin Van Buren, and named as Postmaster of the District of Columbia by President Franklin Pierce. He also served as the mayor of Washington, D.C. from 1858 to 1861. In 1861, when the civil war broke out, Congress enacted a law requiring all officers of national, state and municipal governments to take an oath of allegiance to the United States. He declared there was no necessity for his taking the oath when he had already subscribed to it when inaugurated as mayor and he refused to take the oath. He was arrested under orders of Secretary of State William H. Seward but was subsequently released on the condition that he resign his office despite the fact that there was no evidence of any complicity or sympathy on his part with the confederacy. In addition to public office, he served on the inaugural committees for presidents James Buchanan, Abraham Lincoln, and Grover Cleveland.
Bio by: DXA
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