John Bacon (April 5, 1738 – October 25, 1820) was an American politician, judge, and pastor from

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. John Bacon was born in

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

in the

Connecticut Colony The Connecticut Colony, originally known as the Connecticut River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became the state of Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636, as a settlement for a Puritans, Puritan congregation o ...

on April 5, 1738. Upon graduating from Princeton College he spent some time preaching in

Somerset County, Maryland Somerset County is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 24,620, making it the second-least populous county in Maryland. The county seat is Princess Anne. The county is p ...

. On September 25, 1771, he and Mr. John Hunt were appointed as colleague pastors over the

Old South Church Old South Church (also known as New Old South Church or Third Church), is a historic United Church of Christ congregation in Boston, Massachusetts, first organized in 1669. Its present building at 645 Boylston Street was designed in the Gothic R ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. Bacon ran into difficulties with his congregation over doctrinal issues and his preaching style, which was described as "argumentative... approaching the severe."Bridgeman p. 60 He was dismissed from the Old South Church on February 8, 1775. WLA brooklynmuseum Elizabeth Goldthwaite

WLA brooklynmuseum Elizabeth Goldthwaite

After leaving the church Bacon moved to

Stockbridge, Massachusetts Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,018 at the 2020 census. A year-round resort area, Stockbridg ...

. He was a charter member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

. He served as a Magistrate, Representative, Associate and Presiding Judge of the Common Pleas, Member and President of the State Senate, and Member of Congress. Bacon served on a committee of safety in 1777 and was a member of the Massachusetts constitutional convention in 1779 and 1780. He alternately served in both chambers of the Massachusetts legislature at various points between 1780 and 1806, becoming the president of the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

in 1806. In 1788, he was a candidate for the 4th congressional district, and was later elected to represent the 1st congressional district for a single term in 1800 during which he chaired the Committee on Elections. After leaving Congress, he served as presiding judge of the court of common pleas, and was appointed chief justice of the

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Although the claim is disputed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously fu ...

in 1809. Bacon married Elizabeth, the widow of Alexander Cumming and daughter of Ezekiel Goldthwait, Register of the Deeds for Suffolk County, and died in

, October 25, 1820. Bacon is interred in the Stockbridge Cemetery. His son,

Ezekiel Ezekiel, also spelled Ezechiel (; ; ), was an Israelite priest. The Book of Ezekiel, relating his visions and acts, is named after him. The Abrahamic religions acknowledge Ezekiel as a prophet. According to the narrative, Ezekiel prophesied ...

, and grandson,

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, also served as congressmen, the latter from New York.

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* 1738 births 1820 deaths Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences People from Canterbury, Connecticut People from Stockbridge, Massachusetts Politicians from Berkshire County, Massachusetts Princeton University alumni Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Massachusetts state senators Massachusetts state court judges Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives {{Massachusetts-MARepresentative-stub Candidates in the 1788–1789 United States elections