John Canfield Spencer
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| John Canfield Spencer | |
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| In office October 12, 1841 – March 4, 1843 |
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| President | John Tyler |
| Preceded by | John Bell |
| Succeeded by | James Madison Porter |
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| In office March 8, 1843 – May 2, 1844 |
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| President | John Tyler |
| Preceded by | Walter Forward |
| Succeeded by | George M. Bibb |
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| Born | January 8, 1788 Hudson, New York, U.S. |
| Died | May 18, 1855 (aged 67) Albany, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic-Republican, Whig |
| Spouse | Elizabeth Scott Smith Spencer |
| Profession | Politician, Lawyer, Judge, Secretary |
John Canfield Spencer (January 8, 1788 Hudson, Columbia County, New York - May 18, 1855 Albany, Albany County, New York) was an American lawyer, politician, judge and United States Cabinet secretary in the administration of President John Tyler.
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[edit] Early life
He was the son of Chief Justice Ambrose Spencer. He graduated from Union College in 1806, became secretary to New York Governor Daniel D. Tompkins in 1807, studied law in Albany, New York and was admitted to the bar in 1809, commencing practice in Canandaigua, New York. He married Elizabeth Scott Smith in 1809 and became a master of chancery in 1811.
[edit] State politics
During the War of 1812, Spencer served in the United States Army where he was appointed brigade judge advocate general for the northern frontier. He was postmaster of Canandaigua, New York in 1814, became assistant attorney general and district attorney for the five western counties of New York in 1815 and was elected a Democratic-Republican to the United States House of Representatives in 1816, serving from 1817 to 1819. Instead of seeking renomination in 1818, Spencer was a candidate for the United States Senate, but lost to Rufus King. He was a member of the committee that reported unfavorably on the affairs of the Second Bank of the United States, was a member of the New York Assembly from 1820 to 1822, serving as Speaker in 1820. He was a member of the New York Senate from 1824 to 1828.
In 1826, Spencer served as a special prosecutor to investigate the disappearance of William Morgan who was arrested, kidnapped and murdered for exposing secrets kept by Freemasons, thus sparking the Anti-Masonic movement. Spencer sided with the anti-Masons and was the author of a manuscript on Masonic rituals. He was again a member of the New York Assembly from 1831 to 1833 and moved to Albany, New York in 1837. He edited the English edition of Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America and served as Secretary of State of New York from 1839 to 1841.
[edit] Federal government
In 1841, President John Tyler appointed Spencer to be Secretary of War in his administration. As War Secretary, he proposed a chain of posts extending from Council Bluffs, Iowa to the Columbia River, urged that the government adhere to field commander arrangements by compensating the Creek Indians who were removed from the area. In 1842, his nineteen-year-old son, Philip Spencer, a midshipman, was executed without court-martial along with two other sailors aboard the brig USS Somers for allegedly attempting mutiny.
In 1843, Spencer was appointed Secretary of the Treasury after the resignation of Walter Forward. As Treasury Secretary, he was preoccupied with the tariff and believed that the deficit and other federal expenditures should be funded by duties on imports rather than by internal taxation, something he was forced to announce for the fiscal year in 1843. The expenditures of the treasury had exceeded its receipts and he advocated additional import duties on certain articles such as coffee and tea. He also continued to develop a plan, originally initiated by Forward, for a Board of Exchequer to keep and disburse public funds raised by duties. The Exchequer bill, which reflected the federal government's continuing interest in some form of independent treasury system, failed due to a political conflict in the United States Congress.
President Tyler had nominated Spencer to be an Associate Justice in the United States Supreme Court twice, first in January of 1844 to fill Smith Thompson's seat and again in June of the same year to fill Henry Baldwin's seat, but the Senate failed to confirm him both times. As one of few northerners in an administration dominated by southern interests, Spencer found it increasingly difficult to serve in his cabinet post and resigned as Treasury Secretary in May of 1844. He returned to Albany where he died on May 18, 1855. He was interned in Albany Rural Cemetery beside his wife, Elizabeth.
[edit] References
- John Canfield Spencer at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- John C. Spencer at the United States Army
- John C. Spencer at the United States Department of the Treasury
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Micah Brooks |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 21st congressional district March 4, 1817 - March 3, 1819 |
Succeeded by Nathaniel Allen |
| Preceded by Obadiah German |
Speaker of the New York State Assembly 1820 |
Succeeded by Peter Sharpe |
| Preceded by John Adams Dix |
Secretary of State of New York 1839 - 1841 |
Succeeded by Samuel Young |
| Preceded by John Bell |
United States Secretary of War October 12, 1841 - March 4, 1843 |
Succeeded by James Madison Porter |
| Preceded by Walter Forward |
United States Secretary of the Treasury March 8, 1843 - May 2, 1844 |
Succeeded by George M. Bibb |
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