Jeremiah Henry Murphy (February 19, 1835 – December 11, 1893) was a two-term Democratic

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

from

Iowa's 2nd congressional district Iowa's 2nd congressional district is a List of United States congressional districts, congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa that covers most of its northeastern part. It includes Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, Iowa, Dubuque ...

. Born in

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, United States. Alongside Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, it is one of two traditional county seat, seats of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in ...

, Murphy moved with his parents to

Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin Fond du Lac County () is a county (United States), county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 104,154. Its county seat is Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Fond du Lac. The county was creat ...

, in 1849, and to

Iowa County, Iowa Iowa County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 16,662. The county seat is Marengo, Iowa, Marengo. Iowa County is one of seven counties in the Unite ...

, in 1852. He attended the Boston public schools and Appleton (Wisconsin) University. He graduated from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

at Iowa City in 1857. After studying law, he 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 ...

in 1858 and commenced practice in

Marengo, Iowa Marengo is a city in and the county seat of Iowa County, Iowa, Iowa County, Iowa, United States. It has served as the county seat since August 1845, even though it was not incorporated until July 1859. The population was 2,435 in the 2020 United ...

. Murphy was elected alderman in 1860. He served as delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1864 and 1868. In 1867, he moved to

Davenport, Iowa Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...

and continued the practice of law. Murphy was elected mayor of Davenport in 1873 and again in 1878. He served one term as a member of the

Iowa Senate The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the Iowa, state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency, . Each Senat ...

from 1874 to 1878. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1876 to represent Iowa's 2nd congressional district in the Forty-fifth Congress. In 1882, Murphy again ran for Congress, challenging a freshman incumbent Republican, Sewall S. Farwell. After Murphy won the general election, he took his seat in the

48th United States Congress The 48th 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, 1883, ...

Then, after winning re-election two years later (in 1884), he served in the

49th United States Congress The 49th 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, 188 ...

. However, when seeking a third term in 1886, Murphy was defeated in the Democratic district convention, by Walter I. Hayes. In all, Murphy served in Congress from March 4, 1883 to March 3, 1887. Between the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

and the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, Murphy and Hayes were the only two Democratic congressmen from Iowa to serve two or more full terms. He lived in retirement 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 ...

, until his death in that city on December 11, 1893. He was interred in St. Marguerite's Cemetery (now Mount Calvary Cemetery) in Davenport.

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Jeremiah Henry 1835 births 1893 deaths University of Iowa alumni Democratic Party Iowa state senators Iowa lawyers Iowa city council members Politicians from Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin Politicians from Lowell, Massachusetts Politicians from Davenport, Iowa People from Marengo, Iowa Mayors of Davenport, Iowa Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Iowa 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Iowa General Assembly