Benjamin Franklin Hallett (December 2, 1797 – September 30, 1862) was a

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lawyer and

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activist, most notable as the first chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Benjamin Franklin Hallett was born in

Barnstable, Massachusetts The Town of Barnstable ( ) is a town in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the county seat of Barnstable County. Barnstable is the largest community, both in land area and population, on Cape Cod, and is one of thirteen Massachusetts municipalit ...

. After graduating from Brown University in 1816, he studied law and began a journalistic career in Providence,

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. He soon moved to

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, where he began with the ''Boston Advocate'', shifting to the ''Boston Daily Advertiser'' in 1827. At that time he espoused the views of the Anti-Masonic Party, but when that particular group went out of fashion he switched to the

as an enemy of Henry Clay. He joined and became a prominent member of the Suffolk County, Massachusetts

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Political career

As a candidate for Congress in 1844 and 1848 he was defeated both times by Whig Robert C. Winthrop. In the latter race

Charles Sumner Charles Sumner (January 6, 1811March 11, 1874) was an American statesman and United States Senator from Massachusetts. As an academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the anti-slavery forces in the state and a leader of th ...

was also a candidate, representing the

Free-Soil Party The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery into ...

. In 1848 he became, for four years, the first Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. In March 1853, President Franklin Pierce appointed Hallett to succeed

George Lunt George Lunt (December 31, 1803 – May 17, 1885) was an American editor, lawyer, author, and politician. George's ancestor, Henry Lunt, was one of the original settlers of Newbury (1635). His grandfather's exploits with John Paul Jones were ...

for a four-year term as

United States District Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

for the District of Massachusetts. At the

1856 Democratic National Convention The 1856 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention that met from June 2 to June 6 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1856 election ...

, Hallett was chairman of the Platform Committee.

Role in the splintering of the 1860 Democratic Convention

In 1860 he was chosen as a delegate, but skipped the Charleston, South Carolina, meeting (the convention, scheduled April 23-May 3, 1860, coincided with the death of Hallett's wife, Laura Smith Larned, of bilious fever, on May 3, 1860). Trying to regain the seat he had vacated, the convention at

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voted 138 to 112 to deny Hallett the seat. He then joined the walk-out Convention that nominated

John C. Breckinridge John Cabell Breckinridge (January 16, 1821 – May 17, 1875) was an American lawyer, politician, and soldier. He represented Kentucky in both houses of Congress and became the 14th and youngest-ever vice president of the United States. Serving ...

and

Joseph Lane Joseph "Joe" Lane (December 14, 1801 – April 19, 1881) was an American politician and soldier. He was a state legislator representing Evansville, Indiana, and then served in the Mexican–American War, becoming a general. President James K. ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hallett, Benjamin 1797 births 1862 deaths Brown University alumni Massachusetts lawyers Democratic National Committee chairs People from Barnstable, Massachusetts Anti-Masonic Party politicians from Massachusetts Massachusetts Democrats United States Attorneys for the District of Massachusetts 19th-century American lawyers