James Appleton
| Gen. James Appleton | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Maine House of Representatives | |
|
In office 1836–1839 | |
| Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives | |
|
In office 1813–1834 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
February 14, 1785 Ipswich, Massachusetts |
| Died |
August 25, 1862 (aged 77) Ipswich, Massachusetts |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Federalist, Whig, Liberty |
| Spouse(s) |
Sarah Fuller (m. 1807; his death 1862) |
| Relations |
William Appleton (cousin) Samuel Appleton (cousin) Nathan Appleton(cousin) |
| Children | 10 |
| Parents |
Samuel Appleton Mary White |
| Occupation | Publisher |
Brig. Gen. James Appleton (February 14, 1785 – August 25, 1862)[1] was an American abolitionist, early supporter of temperance, and politician from Maine.[2]
Early life
Appleton was born on February 14, 1785 in Ipswich, Massachusetts on a family farm that had been granted to his ancestor, Samuel Appleton (1624–1696), in 1636.[3] His parents were Samuel Appleton (1738–1819) and Mary (nee White) Appleton (d. 1834), daughter of Rev. Timothy White,[4] and his younger brothers were Timothy Appleton (1778–1857) and Samuel Appleton (1771–1852).[5]
His paternal grandparents were Elizabeth Sawyer (1709–1785) and Isaac Appleton (1704–1794), the son of Isaac Appleton (1664–1747) and Priscilla Baker, granddaughter of Lt. Gov. Samuel Symonds.[6] Appleton was also the cousin of U.S. Rep.William Appleton (1786–1862), merchant Samuel Appleton (1766–1853), and U.S. Rep. Nathan Appleton (1779–1861).[3]
Career
Appleton fought in the War of 1812, commissioned July 3, 1813,[7] and earned the rank of Lieutenant colonel with the Massachusetts Militia and was later promoted to the rank of Brigadier general.[8] He commanded actions at Sandy Bay in September 1814 and Gallop's Folly in October 1814.[7] Appleton lived much of his life in Ipswich, Massachusetts and nearby Marblehead, Massachusetts prior to moving to Maine.[2]
Massachusetts General Court
In 1813 and 1814, at the age of 28, Appleton, a practicing lawyer, was elected to represent Gloucester as a Federalist to the Massachusetts legislature where he was an outspoken critic of the Missouri Compromise.[8] In 1824, he was the official escort of the Marquis de Lafayette upon his visit to Boston.[5] In 1832, he presented a petition to the Massachusetts legislature prohibiting sales of liquor in fewer quantities than thirty gallons.[4]
Maine politics
In 1833, he moved to Portland, Maine, and was elected to the Maine House of Representatives[2] in 1836. The following year, he was chairman of a committee to consider the license system.[4] In 1837,[9] he submitted a report on the evils of liquor that became the basis of the Maine Temperance Law of 1846.[10] The report was considered by Neal Dow to be the first official document in the history of Maine prohibiting the liquor traffic.[4]
In 1839 and 1840, he was vice president of the American Anti-Slavery Society.[11]
In the 1842, 1843, and 1844 gubernatorial elections, Appleton ran for Governor of Maine with the Liberty Party, an abolitionist political party.[11] In 1848, he was a Free Soil presidential elector supporting Martin Van Buren.[11]
In 1861, during the Civil War, James gave patriotic speeches defending the Union and in support of abolition.[5]
Personal life
On November 15, 1807,[4] he was married to Sarah Fuller (1787–1872), the daughter of Rev. Daniel Fuller and Hannah Bowers, of Gloucester. Together, they were the parents of:[12][3]
- Samuel Gilman Appleton (1808–1873), who married Sarah Gardiner, daughter of Rev. Sylvester Gardiner, in 1839.[12]
- Sarah Fuller Appleton (1811–1884), who married Rev. Stephen Caldwell Millett in 1833.[12]
- James Appleton (1813–1884), who married Sarah Bristol Edwards, daughter of Samuel L. Edwards, in 1842.[12]
- Mary White Appleton (1815–1905), who did not marry.[12]
- Elizabeth Putnam Appleton (1818–1897), who married Shelton L. Hall in 1845.[12]
- Joanna Dodge Appleton (1821–1870), who married Peyton R. Morgan in 1843.[12]
- Hannah Fuller Appleton (1823–1903), who married Robert Helyer Thayer (1820–1888).[12]
- Daniel Fuller Appleton (1826–1904), who married Julia Randall (d. 1886), daughter of Nicholas P. Randall. After her death, he married Susan Cowles, daughter of John P. Cowles, in 1889.[12]
- Harriette Hooper Appleton (1828–1905), who married Rev. John Cotton Smith, rector of St John's Church, Portland, and later of the Church of the Ascension in New York City, in 1849.[12]
- Anna Whittemore Appleton (1831–); married Dr. Charles H. Osgood, in 1852.[12]
He lived in Portland from 1833 until 1853 when his elder brother, Timothy Appleton, called him to help manage the family farm in Ipswich.[6] He retired back to Ipswich, buying out his father's surviving heirs and became the sole owner of Appleton Farm in 1857. He died there in 1862.[2][3]
Descendants
Through his son, Daniel, he was the grandfather of 36 including Francis Randall Appleton, a noted New York society man during the Gilded Age.
Honors
The Woman’s Relief Corps gave a marker on Ipswich’s North Green, named in honor of Appleton and in memory of the unknown soldiers and sailors of the Civil War.[5]
References
- ↑ "MHS Collections Online: James Appleton". www.masshist.org. Massachusetts Historical Society. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- 1 2 3 4 Appleton, Daniel Fuller (1886). The Origin of the Maine Law and of Prohibitory Legislation: With a Brief Memoir of James Appleton. National temperance society and publication house. pp. 15–. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
- 1 2 3 4 Appleton, William Sumner (1873). A Rough Sketch of the Appleton Genealogy. T.R. Marvin & Son. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Hannan, Caryn (2008). Massachusetts Biographical Dictionary. State History Publications. pp. 26–27. ISBN 9781878592668. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- 1 2 3 4 Dolan, Susan Hill; Campbell, Rebecca Gardner (Fall 2013). "Generations of Appleton Family Portraits" (PDF). thetrustees.org. Ipswich, Massachusetts: The Trustees of Reservations. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- 1 2 "Appleton Family Papers." (PDF). thetrustees.access.preservica.com. Sharon, MA: The Trustees of Reservations, Archives & Research Center. April 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- 1 2 Webb, Henry Randall; Noble, Henry Harmon (June 1, 1908). The Constitution and Register of Membership of the General Society of the War of 1812. Philadelphia, PA: The Order of the General Society | The Law Reporter Printing Co. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- 1 2 "Boston’s Crusade Against Slavery - Houghton Library". hcl.harvard.edu. Harvard University. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- ↑ Byrne 1961, pp. 24–26.
- ↑ Byrne, Frank L. (1961). Prophet of Prohibition: Neal Dow and His Crusade. Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society of Wisconsin. OCLC 2126034.
- 1 2 3 Johnson, Reinhard O. (2009). The Liberty Party, 1840-1848: Antislavery Third-Party Politics in the United States. LSU Press. p. 380. ISBN 9780807142639. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Cutter, William Richard (1913). New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial: A Record of the Achievements of Her People in the Making of Commonwealths and the Founding of a Nation. Lewis Historical Publishing Company. Retrieved 22 June 2017.