William Pennington (May 4, 1796 – February 16, 1862) was an American politician and lawyer. He was the 13th

governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official r ...

from 1837 to 1843. He served one term in the

United States House of Representatives 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 ...

, during which he served as

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

from 1860 to 1861.

Early life and education

Born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

) in 1813 and then studied law with

Theodore Frelinghuysen Theodore Frelinghuysen (March 28, 1787April 12, 1862) was an American politician who represented New Jersey in the United States Senate. He was the Whig vice presidential nominee in the election of 1844, running on a ticket with Henry Clay. Bo ...

. He was admitted to the bar in 1817 and served as a clerk of the

United States District Court for the District of New Jersey The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (in case citations, D.N.J.) is a federal court in the Third Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the ...

(where his father was a judge) from 1817 to 1826. His father,

William Sanford Pennington William Sanford Pennington (1757 – September 17, 1826) was a United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey, an associate justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey, the sixth governor of New Jersey and a United States district judge of ...

was a Revolutionary War veteran and was himself Governor of New Jersey from 1813 to 1815 before President Madison appointed him as a federal judge.

Governor of New Jersey

As a member of the Whig party, he was elected to the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

in 1828 and then was elected Governor of New Jersey annually from 1837 to 1843. His tenure as governor was marked by the "

Broad Seal War The Broad Seal War was a controversy over the results of the United States congressional elections in New Jersey in 1838. Following the closely contested elections of 1838, two contingents of the six New Jersey representatives-elect, one composed ...

" controversy. Following a disputed election for Congressional Representatives in New Jersey, Pennington certified the election of five Whig candidates while five Democrats were certified by the Democratic Secretary of State. After a lengthy dispute, the Democrats were eventually seated.

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives

In November 1858, Pennington was elected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to represent

New Jersey's 5th congressional district New Jersey's 5th congressional district is represented by Democrat Josh Gottheimer, who has served in Congress since 2017. The district stretches across the entire northern border of the state and contains most of Bergen County, as well as p ...

in the U.S. House of Representatives during the 36th Congress but only after a protracted

election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...

for speaker of the House of Representatives lasting 44 ballots over eight weeks (December 5, 1859, to February 1, 1860). It was the second time since 1789 that the House elected a freshman congressmen as its speaker (after Henry Clay in 1811); the feat has not been repeated since. In March 1861, he penned his name on the

Corwin Amendment The Corwin Amendment was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution that was never adopted. It would shield "domestic institutions" of the states from the federal constitutional amendment process and from abolition or interference by ...

, a proposed amendment to the

U.S. Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the nation ...

shielding state "domestic institutions" (a euphemism for

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

) from future constitutional amendments and from abolition or interference by Congress. Submitted to the states for

ratification Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inte ...

shortly before the outbreak of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, it was not ratified by the requisite number of states.

Death

After running unsuccessfully for reelection in 1860 to the

37th Congress The 37th 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, 1861, ...

, he returned to New Jersey, dying in Newark of an unintentional

morphine Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a pain medication, and is also commonly used recreationally, or to make other illicit opioids. T ...

overdose. He was interred at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Newark.

Notes

References

Sources

New Jersey Historical Commission biography for William PenningtonNew Jersey Governor William Pennington

National Governors Association The National Governors Association (NGA) is an American political organization founded in 1908. The association's members are the governors of the 55 states, territories and commonwealths. Members come to the association from across the politica ...

William Pennington biography
from

The Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations o ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pennington, William 1796 births 1862 deaths Governors of New Jersey Burials at Mount Pleasant Cemetery (Newark, New Jersey) Republican Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly New Jersey lawyers Politicians from Newark, New Jersey Princeton University alumni Speakers of the United States House of Representatives American Presbyterians New Jersey Whigs Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey Whig Party state governors of the United States 19th-century American politicians Lawyers from Newark, New Jersey Drug-related deaths in New Jersey 19th-century American lawyers