John Morin Scott (October 25, 1789 – April 3, 1858) was an American politician who served as a Whig Party member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

from 1815 to 1816, and again in 1839. He served several terms in the Common and Select Councils for Philadelphia and as president of the Select Council for Philadelphia from 1826 to 1832. He served as the 63rd

mayor of Philadelphia The mayor of Philadelphia is the chief executive of the government of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Philadelphia. The current mayor of Philadelphia is Cherelle Parker, who is the first woman to hold the ...

from 1841 to 1844 and was the first mayor of Philadelphia elected by popular vote rather than through appointment by the city councils. As mayor, he oversaw a turbulent time in Philadelphia history including the

Lombard Street Riot The Lombard Street riot was a three-day race riot in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1842.Gregory, Kia. ''Philadelphia Weekly''Monumental Achievement December 7, 2005; accessed April 30, 2008.Newlin, Heather"The Calm After the Storm", phillyhistor ...

and the

Philadelphia Nativist Riots The Philadelphia nativist riots (also known as the Philadelphia Prayer Riots, the Bible Riots and the Native American Riots) were a series of riots that took place on May 68 and July 67, 1844, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States and the a ...

. He survived an assassination attempt in 1843 when he was shot in the back by a visitor to the mayor's office.

Early life and education

Scott was born on October 25, 1789, in New York, New York, to

Lewis Allaire Scott Lewis Allaire Scott (February 11, 1759 – March 17, 1798) was an American politician. Early life Scott was the son of John Morin Scott (1730–1784) and Helena ( Rutgers) Scott. His elder sister, Mary Morin Scott, married John Litchfield and, af ...

and Juliana Sitgreaves. He graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

in 1805, and moved with his mother and sister to Philadelphia around 1807. He read law at the office of

William Rawle William Rawle (April 28, 1759 – April 12, 1836) was an American lawyer from Philadelphia, who served as United States district attorney in Pennsylvania from 1791 to 1800. He founded The Rawle Law Offices in 1783 which evolved into Rawle & Hend ...

, was admitted to the Philadelphia

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar ** Chocolate bar * Protein bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...

on September 2, 1811, and the bar of the

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Judiciary of Pennsylvania, Unified Judicial System. It began in 1684 as the Provincial Court, and casual references to it as ...

on December 28, 1811. He worked as a lawyer in Philadelphia. He served as a lieutenant in the Second Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry regiment at Camp DuPont during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

Career

He was a member of the Whig Party. He served as a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1815 to 1816, and again in 1839, by which time he had become a member of the board of trustees of

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 18 ...

, on which he served from 1826 to 1847. He served several terms in both the Common and Select City Councils for Philadelphia and was elected president of the Select Council for Philadelphia from 1826 to 1832. He was nominated as a Whig candidate for representative in the United States Congress but declined the offer. He served as a member of the Constitutional Convention for the State of Pennsylvania from 1837 to 1838. John Morin Scott tombstone

He was elected mayor of Philadelphia in 1841 and served for three years. He was the first Philadelphia mayor to obtain the office through election by popular vote rather than by appointment of the city councils. As mayor, he oversaw a turbulent time in Philadelphia history. During the 1842

Lombard Street riot The Lombard Street riot was a three-day race riot in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1842.Gregory, Kia. ''Philadelphia Weekly''Monumental Achievement December 7, 2005; accessed April 30, 2008.Newlin, Heather"The Calm After the Storm", phillyhistor ...

, Scott and Philadelphia constables responded to the racial violence by mostly arresting black victims. On May 3, 1843, he survived an assassination attempt when he was shot in the back by a visitor to the mayor's office. During the 1844

, Scott deployed the

Pennsylvania Militia The Pennsylvania National Guard is one of the oldest and largest National Guards in the United States Department of Defense. It traces its roots to 1747 when Benjamin Franklin established the Associators in Philadelphia. With more than 18,000 pe ...

to protect Catholic properties and pleaded with rioters to spare the destruction of St. Augustine Church. He was hit in the chest with a rock thrown by protestors and the church was burned. Scott left this post in 1844; he died in Philadelphia on April 3, 1858, and was interred at

Laurel Hill Cemetery Laurel Hill Cemetery, also called Laurel Hill East to distinguish it from the affiliated West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, Bala Cynwyd, is a historic rural cemetery in the East Falls, Philadelphia, East Falls neighborhood ...

Personal life

He married Mary Emlen in 1817 and together they had eight children. He was the grandson of New York City lawyer,

John Morin Scott John Morin Scott (1730 – September 14, 1784) was a lawyer, military officer, and statesman before, during and after the American Revolution. Early life Scott was born in Manhattan, Province of New York in 1730. He was the only child of John ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, John Morin (mayor) 1789 births 1858 deaths 19th-century American lawyers American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law American shooting survivors Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia) Lafayette College trustees Lawyers from Philadelphia Mayors of Philadelphia Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Pennsylvania Whigs People from Pennsylvania in the War of 1812 Philadelphia City Council members Princeton University alumni 19th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly