John Samuel Peters (September 21, 1772 – March 30, 1858) was an American politician, a member of the National Republican and later Whig parties, and the 26th Governor of Connecticut.

Biography

Peters was born in

Hebron, Connecticut Hebron ( ) is a New England town, town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, Capitol Planning Region. The population was 9,098 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, on September 21, 1772, son of Beneslie and Ann Shipman Peters. He worked on a farm, attended the district schools, taught school in Hebron in 1790, studied medicine under Dr. Benjamin Rush of Marbletown, N.Y., for six months and then under Dr. Abner Mosely of Glastonbury, Conn.; in 1796 attended lectures in Philadelphia, Pa., and practised in Hebron, from 1797 to 1837. He never married.

Career

Peters was town clerk for twenty years, judge of probate for the district of Hebron, and frequently a member of the state legislature. He received the votes of one branch of the state legislature in 1824, when Calvin Willey was elected. In 1810 he was elected to in the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an equal number of districts, with each ...

and was re-elected in 1816 and 1817. He was a member of Connecticut Council of Assistants in 1818. He served in the

Connecticut Senate The Connecticut State Senate is the upper house of the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The state senate comprises 36 members, each representing a district with around 99,280 inhabitants. Se ...

from 1818 to 1823, and was a member of Connecticut House of Representatives from Hebron from 1824 to 1825. Peters became the 31st

Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut The lieutenant governor of Connecticut is the second highest executive officer of the government of the U.S. State of Connecticut. The lieutenant governor acts as President of the State Senate, presiding over the Senate and casting votes in the ...

in 1827. He became the Governor of Connecticut in March 1831, when Governor Tomlinson resigned from office. He was nominated and elected the Governor of Connecticut later in

1831 Events January–March * January 1 – William Lloyd Garrison begins publishing '' The Liberator'', an anti-slavery newspaper, in Boston, Massachusetts. * January 10 – Japanese department store, Takashimaya in Kyoto estab ...

, and was re-elected to a second term in

1832 Events January–March * January 6 – Abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison founds the New-England Anti-Slavery Society. * January 13 – The Christmas Rebellion of slaves is brought to an end in Jamaica, after the island's white pla ...

. During his term, Connecticut's first railroads were authorized and private enterprise was promoted. He also advocated internal and educational improvements, but he was unsuccessful in securing the appropriate funding. He left office in

1833 Events January–March * January 3 – The United Kingdom reasserts British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. * February 6 (January 25 on the Greek calendar) – Prince Otto Friedrich Ludwig of Bavaria arr ...

, after an unsuccessful re-election bid. He was a delegate to the Whig National Convention from Connecticut in 1839, and was the Convention Vice-President.

Death and legacy

Peters died on March 30, 1858, at the age of 85. He is interred at St. Peter's Episcopal Cemetery,

. His large stone monument includes a bust of the governor. He was a fellow of the Tolland County Medical society; treasurer, vice-president and president of the State Medical society, and vice president of the Connecticut Historical Society. He received the honorary degree of M.D. from Yale in 1818, and LL.D. from Trinity in 1831. He was the nephew of clergyman Samuel Peters and the cousin of Connecticut Supreme Court Justice, John Thompson Peters.

References

External links

* Sobel, Robert and John Raimo. ''Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789–1978''. Greenwood Press, 1988.
Ancestry.comConnecticut State Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peters, John Samuel 1772 births 1858 deaths Governors of Connecticut Members of the Connecticut House of Representatives People from Hebron, Connecticut Connecticut National Republicans American politicians of Dutch descent National Republican Party state governors of the United States Connecticut Whigs Members of the Connecticut General Assembly Council of Assistants (1662–1818) Lieutenant governors of Connecticut Connecticut Democratic-Republicans 19th-century members of the Connecticut General Assembly