Isaac Toucey (November 15, 1792July 30, 1869) was an American politician who served as a

U.S. senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

U.S. Attorney General The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

and the 33rd

Governor of Connecticut The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Connecticu ...

Biography

Born in

Newtown, Connecticut Newtown is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the Greater Danbury metropolitan area as well as the New York metropolitan area. Newtown was founded in 1705, and later incorporated in 1711. As of the 2020 censu ...

, Toucey pursued classical studies; studied law and was admitted to the bar at

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

, in 1818. From 1825 to 1835 he had his own practice in

. He married Catherine Nichols in Hartford on October 28, 1827. The couple never had any children.

Career

In 1822, Toucey was named prosecuting attorney of

Hartford County, Connecticut Hartford County is a county located in the north central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. According to the 2020 census, the population was 899,498, making it the second-most populous county in Connecticut. Hartford County contains the ...

. He served in that position until 1835, when he was elected to the 24th and

25th Congress The 25th 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, 183 ...

es (at-large and then representing the 1st District). He served from 1835 to 1839. He lost the election of 1838 and returned to his position as prosecuting attorney in 1842. In

1845 Events January–March * January 10 – Elizabeth Barrett receives a love letter from the younger poet Robert Browning; on May 20, they meet for the first time in London. She begins writing her ''Sonnets from the Portuguese''. * January 23 ...

, Toucey ran for Governor of Connecticut and lost, but the

Connecticut State Legislature The Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. Th ...

appointed him to the position following the election in

1846 Events January–March * January 5 – The United States House of Representatives votes to stop sharing the Oregon Country with the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom. * January 13 – The Milan–Venice railway' ...

. During his tenure, an antibribery bill geared toward eliminating fraudulent electoral procedures was considered. He was defeated in an attempt at re-nomination in 1847. In 1848,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

James K. Polk James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. He previously was the 13th speaker of the House of Representatives (1835–1839) and ninth governor of Tennessee (183 ...

appointed Toucey the 20th

Attorney General of the United States The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

, a position he held until 1849. He returned to Connecticut and took a place in the

Connecticut Senate The Connecticut State Senate is the upper house of the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The state senate comprises 36 members, each representing a district with around 99,280 inhabitants. Sena ...

in 1850, and then in the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an ...

in 1852. Toucey was elected to the U.S. Senate for the term commencing March 4, 1851, and served from May 12, 1852, to March 3, 1857, having that year declined to be a candidate for reelection. During that time, he often served as the legislative point man for

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unity ...

and his administration.

James Buchanan James Buchanan Jr. ( ; April 23, 1791June 1, 1868) was an American lawyer, diplomat and politician who served as the 15th president of the United States from 1857 to 1861. He previously served as secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and repr ...

, with whom Toucey had served in the Polk administration, appointed him U.S. Secretary of the Navy in his

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

in 1857 as a sop to the Pierce faction as well as to represent New England in the Cabinet. A moderate Northerner much in line with Buchanan's thought in the sectional controversies of the day, Toucey held that post until 1861 and the arrival of the

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

administration. During that time, Toucey would undergo criticism for alleged corruption as uncovered by the Covode Committee, resulting in him being censured by the House of Representatives in June 1860. Toucey was then replaced by one of his chief rivals in Connecticut,

Gideon Welles Gideon Welles (July 1, 1802 – February 11, 1878), nicknamed "Father Neptune", was the United States Secretary of the Navy from 1861 to 1869, a cabinet post he was awarded after supporting Abraham Lincoln in the 1860 election. Although opposed ...

. After 1861 he returned to his law practice.

Death and legacy

Toucey died in Hartford on July 30, 1869. He is interred at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Hartford, Connecticut. USS ''Toucey'' (DD-282) was named for him.

References

External links

Connecticut State Library: Isaac Toucey, Governor of Connecticut from 1846 to 1847
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Govtrack US Congress
, - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Toucey, Isaac 1792 births 1869 deaths 19th-century American politicians Buchanan administration cabinet members Burials at Cedar Hill Cemetery (Hartford, Connecticut) Connecticut lawyers Democratic Party Connecticut state senators Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut Democratic Party governors of Connecticut Democratic Party United States senators from Connecticut Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut Toucy, Isaac People from Newtown, Connecticut Politicians from Hartford, Connecticut Politicians from Staunton, Virginia Polk administration cabinet members United States Attorneys General United States Secretaries of the Navy Union (American Civil War) political leaders