Samuel Lathrop (May 1, 1772 – July 11, 1846) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

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Biography

Samuel Lathrop was born on May 1, 1772, on the western side of Springfield (which would later be incorporated as a separate town in 1774) in the

Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in British America which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of ...

. He was the son of Reverend Joseph Lathrop, longtime pastor of the First Church of West Springfield. He pursued classical studies and graduated from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in 1792. He studied law., was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

, and commenced practice in West Springfield. Lathrop served as West Springfield's clerk and treasurer from 1796 to 1798, and was town meeting moderator eight years. From 1817 to 1821 he served as Hampden County Attorney. Lathrop was elected as a Federalist to the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Congresses, reelected as an Adams-Clay Federalist to the Eighteenth Congress, and reelected as an Adams candidate to the Nineteenth Congress (March 4, 1819 – March 3, 1827). He served as chairman of the Committee on Revisal and Unfinished Business (Seventeenth and Eighteenth Congresses). In 1824 Lathrop ran unsuccessfully for

Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the chief executive officer of the government of Massachusetts. The governor is the head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonwealth's military forces. Massachuset ...

, losing to Levi Lincoln, Jr. Lathrop was the last Federalist nominee for Massachusetts governor. After leaving Congress Lathrop resumed the practice of law and became a gentleman farmer. He served as member of the

Massachusetts State Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the st ...

in 1829 and 1830 and served as President pro tempore. In 1831 and 1832 he ran unsuccessfully for governor as an Anti-Mason, losing both times to Lincoln. From 1829 to 1840 he was a trustee of Amherst College.

Death and burial

Lathrop died in West Springfield on July 11, 1846. He was interred in the Park Street Cemetery.

Family

In 1797 Lathrop married Mary McCracken, and they were the parents of four sons and six daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lathrop, Samuel 1772 births 1846 deaths People from West Springfield, Massachusetts Yale College alumni Massachusetts lawyers Massachusetts Democratic-Republicans Massachusetts state senators Presidents of the Massachusetts Senate Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts Burials in Massachusetts 19th-century American lawyers