David Jermah Redick (5 July 1753 – 28 September 1805) was a

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. These points are usually on the ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

, and the 9th Vice-President of Pennsylvania.

Biography

Redick was born in

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, and after coming to America made his home for several years in

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Lancaster County (; ), sometimes nicknamed the Garden Spot of America or Pennsylvania Dutch Country, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 United States ...

. Redick was a veteran of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

and was in the 1st Brigade Georgia Militia. He

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

and was admitted to the bar in 1782. Redick was elected to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

in 1789.

Family

He married the niece of business associate David Hoge. Redick and his wife had at least three children. A son became a lawyer and died at a young age. His daughter, Nancy, and her husband inherited the Redick home in Washington and lived there until their own deaths. Another daughter married and settled in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

Early life

Not much is known about Redick's early life, he

immigrated Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1765. He lived with his parents, ((Who are unknown)), in somewhere around

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Career

Redick accompanied Hoge (c. 1780) to survey the latter's land holdings in the Chartiers Valley, in western Pennsylvania. Under Hoge's direction he

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted the town of Bassett Town, which was soon renamed

Washington, Pennsylvania Washington, also known as Little Washington to distinguish it from the District of Columbia, is a city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 13,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

. At that time, Washington County was in the process of being established, and Hoge apparently wanted to establish a town that could serve as the new county's center of government. Redick purchased a lot on the town's main street and lived there until his death.

War Service

He served in the army during the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

and served in the army for about 6 years, reaching the rank of NCO.

Public service

Redick was elected to represent Washington County on the

Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania The Supreme Executive Council of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was the collective directorial executive branch of the Pennsylvanian state government between 1777 and 1790. It was headed by a president and a vice president (analogous to a gove ...

in 1786. He was elected

Vice-President of the Council The secretary of state for education, also referred to as the education secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department for Education. ...

(a position analogous to

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

) on 14 October 1788, following the resignation of

Peter Muhlenberg John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg (October 1, 1746October 1, 1807) was an American clergyman and military officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. A member of Pennsylvania's prominent Muhlenberg family political dynasty, he became ...

, and served until the next regular election, 5 November 1788, when he was succeeded by George Ross. His was the second-shortest tenure as Vice-President, and the third-shortest of ''any'' Pennsylvania

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

or Lieutenant Governor. Although his time in office was brief he was the first statewide officer from Pennsylvania's western frontier. All of the Presidents of Pennsylvania had been elected to Council from either the

City A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

or County of Philadelphia, and the other Vice-Presidents had represented counties of southeastern Pennsylvania, none farther west than

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

. The county Redick represented hadn't even existed when the Supreme Executive Council was established less than twelve years earlier. Perhaps due to his abilities as a surveyor, in 1787 Redick was appointed an agent for the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

for communicating with the

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...

regarding Connecticut's claims to land in Pennsylvania. He was a member of Pennsylvania's 1790 Constitutional Convention and was a signer of the new charter. In 1791 he became

prothonotary A prothonotary is the "principal clerk of a court," from Late Latin, L.L. ''prothonotarius'' (Wiktionary:circa, c. 400), from Greek ''protonotarios'' "first scribe," originally the chief of the college of recorders of the court of the Byzantine E ...

and clerk of courts of Washington County. During his brief period as Vice-President of Pennsylvania Redick was an ''ex officio'' member of the

Board of Trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

of the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

.Biography o
David Redick
at the

, accessed 22 April 2007.

Whiskey Rebellion

Redick was involved in the

Whiskey Rebellion The Whiskey Rebellion (also known as the Whiskey Insurrection) was a violent tax protest in the United States beginning in 1791 and ending in 1794 during the presidency of George Washington. The so-called "whiskey tax" was the first tax impo ...

—not on the side of the rebels but, rather, "in defense of law, order, and the constitution."Crumrine, Boyd (1882). ''History of Washington County, Pennsylvania with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men'' (Philadelphia: Leverts). With William Findley, he presented the document representing the rebels' surrender to

President Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War again ...

and

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 dur ...

Carlisle, Pennsylvania Carlisle is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Carlisle is located within the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region. As of the 2020 United States census ...

in October 1794.Old St. Luke's
history o

, accessed 22 April 2007.
accessed 22 April 2007.

Death

Redick died on 28 September 1805 in Washington, Pennsylvania from a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

. He was buried with

Masonic Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

honors. His

grave A grave is a location where a cadaver, dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is burial, buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of buria ...

site is in the Old Washington Cemetery in downtown

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Redick, David Lieutenant governors of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania lawyers American surveyors Irish emigrants to the United States People of Pennsylvania in the American Revolution Politicians from Washington County, Pennsylvania 1805 deaths Year of birth unknown American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law 1753 births