Elias Kent Kane (June 7, 1794December 12, 1835) was the first Illinois Secretary of State and a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

from

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Early life

He was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, to merchant Capt. Elias Kent Kane and Deborah VanSchelluyne of

Dutchess County, New York Dutchess County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 295,911. The county seat is the city of Poughkeepsie. The county was created in 1683, one of New York's first twelve counties, and later o ...

. Young Kane attended public schools, then

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, ...

, from which he has graduated in the year 1813.

Career

After he studied law and was admitted to the bar, Kane commenced practice in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, and then moved to

Kaskaskia, Illinois Kaskaskia is a village in Randolph County, Illinois on the Mississippi River. Having been inhabited by indigenous peoples, the village was settled by France as part of the Illinois Country and was named for the Kaskaskia people. Its population p ...

in 1814. He became allied with

Jesse B. Thomas Jesse Burgess Thomas (1777May 2, 1853) was an American lawyer, judge and politician who served as a delegate from the Indiana Territory to the 10th Congress and later served as president of the Constitutional Convention which led to Illinois bei ...

, a slaveholder who had secured the job of judge of the

Territory of Illinois The Territory of Illinois was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 1, 1809, until December 3, 1818, when the southern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Illinois. Its c ...

. Like Judge Thomas and his rival

Ninian Edwards Ninian Edwards (March 17, 1775July 20, 1833) was an American political figure who was prominent in Illinois. He served as the first and only governor of the Illinois Territory from 1809 to until the territory earned statehood in 1818. He was then ...

, Kane was a delegate to the first state constitutional convention in 1818. At the convention, the Thomas/Kane faction unsuccessfully tried to add language permitting slavery in the new state (where it had been forbidden by the

Northwest Ordinance of 1787 The Northwest Ordinance (formally An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio and also known as the Ordinance of 1787), enacted July 13, 1787, was an organic act of the Congress of the Co ...

). However, that proposal was defeated by a faction whose leaders included

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

John Mason Peck John Mason Peck (1789–1858) was an American Baptist missionary to the western frontier of the United States, especially in Missouri and Illinois. A prominent anti-slavery advocate of his day, Peck also founded many educational institutions ...

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

Peter Cartwright,

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

James Lemen James Lemen Sr. (November 10, 1760 – January 8, 1823) was an American church founder and an influential leader of the anti-slavery movement in Indiana Territory in the early nineteenth century. Biography Born near Harper's Ferry, Virginia (now ...

, publisher

Hooper Warren ''Hooper'' may refer to: Place names in the United States: * Hooper, Colorado, town in Alamosa County, Colorado * Hooper, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Hooper, Nebraska, town in Dodge County, Nebraska * Hooper, Utah, place in Weber Cou ...

and future governor

Edward Coles Edward Coles (December 15, 1786 – July 7, 1868) was an American abolitionist and politician, elected as the second Governor of Illinois (1822 to 1826). From an old Virginia family, Coles as a young man was a neighbor and associate of presi ...

. Kane claimed ownership of five people as slaves in 1820, Updated 12 April 2022 After an unsuccessful 1820 campaign for election to the 17th Congress which featured numerous letters in the ''Edwardsville Spectator'' concerning slavery, and which anti-slavery candidate

Daniel Pope Cook Daniel Pope Cook (1794 – October 16, 1827) was a politician, lawyer and newspaper publisher from the U.S. state of Illinois. An anti-slavery advocate, he was the state's first attorney general, and then became a congressman. He is the name ...

won, Kane became Illinois' first Secretary of State, and served from 1820 to 1824. In that year, Kane led proslavery forces in the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representativ ...

which attempted to call another constitutional convention, but was again defeated by a coalition led by Governor Coles, U.S. Representative Cook and religious leaders of many denominations. However, fellow legislators twice appointed Kane to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

. He served from March 4, 1825, until his death in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, in 1835.

Legacy

His body was returned to the family farm in

Randolph County, Illinois Randolph County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 30,163. Its county seat is Chester. Owing to its role in the state's history, the county motto is "Where Illinois Began." ...

, but due to continued desecration of the family gravesite, he was reinterred in 1984 (a campaign led by local funeral director, Michael McClure) in Evergreen Cemetery in nearby Chester, in a grave adjacent with that of his sometime political opponent and Illinois' first governor,

Shadrach Bond Shadrach Bond (November 24, 1773 – April 12, 1832) was a representative from the Illinois Territory to the United States Congress. In 1818, he was elected Governor of Illinois, becoming the new state's first chief executive. In an example of Am ...

. The Kane family gravesite includes that of his wife, the former Frances Pelletier (1799-1851), two children who died young, and four sons. One son, Elias Kent Kane, Jr. (1822-1853), served in the United States Army. One of Kane's daughters married Illinois governor

William H. Bissell William Henry Bissell (April 25, 1811March 18, 1860) was the 11th Governor of the U.S. state of Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its n ...

, a vocal opponent of slavery. Kane's father (of the same name) is buried in

Congressional Cemetery The Congressional Cemetery, officially Washington Parish Burial Ground, is a historic and active cemetery located at 1801 E Street in Washington, D.C., in the Hill East neighborhood on the west bank of the Anacostia River. It is the only American ...

in Washington, D.C., having survived this son by five years and secured his namesake grandson's admission to West Point. On January 16, 1836, the Illinois legislature formed a new county,

Kane Kane or KANE may refer to: Art, entertainment and media Fictional entities *Kane (comics), the main character of the eponymous comic book series by Paul Grist * Kane (''Command & Conquer''), Tiberium universe character in the ''Command & Conquer'' ...

, and named it to honor the recently deceased Senator, Elias Kent Kane.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kane, Elias Kent 1794 births 1835 deaths Politicians from New York City Schuyler family Jacksonian United States senators from Illinois Democratic Party United States senators from Illinois Secretaries of state of Illinois Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives Kane County, Illinois People from Kaskaskia, Illinois Yale College alumni Members of Illinois constitutional conventions United States senators who owned slaves 19th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly 19th-century United States senators

Early life

Career

Legacy

See also

References