John Martin (November 12, 1833September 3, 1913) was an American lawyer and politician from

Hartsville, Tennessee Hartsville is a town in Trousdale County, Tennessee, United States. It is the county seat of Trousdale County, with which it shares a consolidated city-county government. The population of Hartsville was 11,615 as of 2020. Hartsville now shares ...

. He represented

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

in 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 ...

from 1893 until 1895. Martin was born near Hartsville,

Trousdale County, Tennessee Trousdale County, also known as Hartsville/Trousdale County, is a county (United States), county in the US state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 11,615. Its county seat is Hartsville, Tennessee ...

on November 12, 1833. He attended the common schools and clerked in stores and the post office, before moving to

Tecumseh Tecumseh ( ; (March 9, 1768October 5, 1813) was a Shawnee chief and warrior who promoted resistance to the Territorial evolution of the United States, expansion of the United States onto Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

Shawnee County, Kansas Shawnee County is located in northeast Kansas, in the central United States. Its county seat and most populous city is Topeka, the state capital. As of the 2020 census, the population was 178,909, making it the third-most populous county ...

in 1855. He was elected assistant clerk of the first house of representatives in the Territory in 1855; county clerk and register of deeds 1855-1857; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1856 and commenced practice in Tecumseh; justice of the peace 1857; county attorney of Shawnee County 1858-1860; postmaster of Tecumseh 1858-1859; deputy United States attorney 1859-1861; reporter of the State supreme court 1860; moved to Topeka and practiced law in 1861; member, State house of representatives 1871-1875; unsuccessful Democratic candidate for governor in 1876 and for the United States Senate in 1877; district judge 1883-1885; unsuccessful candidate for election to the Fiftieth Congress; unsuccessful candidate for governor in 1888. Martin was elected as a Democrat to the United States Senate on January 25, 1893, to fill the remainder of the term left vacant by the death of Preston B. Plumb. The circumstances of his election were highly controversial. Several weeks after Martin took office, 77 members of the Kansas Legislature protested Martin’s election before the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections. Two competing bodies had claimed to be the Kansas House of Representatives. The Governor and the Kansas State Senate agreed on which was legitimate. However, the recognized house fell short of their quorum during the senatorial election. The presiding officer allowed two “rump legislators” to vote for Martin while excluding the rest of the illegitimate body. The "rump house" then held its own election, voting for Republican Joseph W. Ady. The

Kansas Supreme Court The Kansas Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority in the U.S. state of Kansas. Composed of seven justices, led by Chief Justice Marla Luckert, the court supervises the legal profession, administers the judicial branch, and serves as t ...

ruled that the "rump house" was the legal legislature, disbanding the body which elected Martin. Nonetheless, Martin served in the US Senate from March 4, 1893, to March 3, 1895; chairman, Committee on Railroads (Fifty-third Congress). Martin later became the clerk of the Supreme Court of Kansas, serving from 1897 to 1899. Martin died in Topeka, Kansas on September 3, 1913, and was interred in Topeka Cemetery.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, John 1833 births 1913 deaths Kansas state court judges Democratic Party members of the Kansas House of Representatives Democratic Party United States senators from Kansas People from Hartsville, Tennessee People from Shawnee County, Kansas Politicians from Topeka, Kansas 19th-century American judges Burials at Topeka Cemetery 19th-century United States senators 19th-century members of the Kansas Legislature