Joseph Webber Jackson (December 6, 1796 – September 29, 1854) was an American

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

from the state of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

who served in the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

Early life

Jackson was born in Cedar Hill,

, near

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

. He studied law, gained admittance to the state bar and became a practicing attorney.

Career

Jackson served on the Savannah municipal council and also as the city's

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

. He served in the

Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republican Party (United States), Repu ...

and then in the

Georgia Senate The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, in the U.S. state of Georgia. The Georgia State Senate and the lower house of the General Assembly, the Georgia House of Representatives, comprise the bicameral leg ...

. Jackson served as a captain in the Savannah Volunteer Guards and also as a colonel of the 1st Regiment in the Georgia Militia in addition to serving as judge of the superior court of Georgia. Jackson was elected to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

as a Democrat to fill remainder of the term for the seat left vacant in

Georgia's 1st congressional district Georgia's 1st congressional district is a List of United States congressional districts, congressional district in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is currently represented by Republican Party (United States), Republican Budd ...

in the

31st United States Congress The 31st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1849, ...

by the resignation of Thomas B. King in 1850. Jackson was reelected as a States Rights candidate to the 32nd Congress and served from March 4, 1850, through March 3, 1853. He did not run for reelection in 1852 to the 33rd Congress. Jackson died in Savannah on September 29, 1854.

References

1796 births 1854 deaths Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Democratic Party Georgia (U.S. state) state senators Mayors of Savannah, Georgia Democratic Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) 19th-century Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges 19th-century American lawyers Members of the United States House of Representatives who owned slaves 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives {{GeorgiaUS-state-judge-stub