John Wesley Crockett

John Wesley Crockett (1807 - 1852) was an American politician who represented Tennessee's twelfth district in the United States House of Representatives. It was the same district his father, David Crockett, had represented earlier.

Biography

John Wesley Crockett was born in Trenton, Tennessee on July 10, 1807 to David (Davy) Crockett (August 17, 1786 – March 6, 1836) and his first wife, Mary (Polly) Finley (1788-1815). John Wesley Crockett had one brother and one sister by the names of William Finley Crockett and Margaret Finley (Polly) Crockett. He was educated in the public school system, studied law, and then was admitted to the bar. He began his law practice in Paris, Tennessee.

Crockett held numerous local and state offices before being elected as a Whig to the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth Congresses. He served from March 4, 1837 to March 3, 1841. Crockett was next elected by the Tennessee General Assembly to be the attorney general for the ninth district of Tennessee, and served from 1841 to 1843.

In 1843, he moved to New Orleans and became a commission merchant. He was also a newspaper editor, publishing the National from May 22, 1848 and establishing the Crescent around 1847. In 1852, Crockett moved to Memphis, Tennessee. He died there the same year on November 24 at the age of 45. He was interred in Old City Cemetery in Paris, Tennessee.

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