John Tod (1779March 27, 1830) was an American judge and politician who served as a

Democratic-Republican The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed l ...

member of the

U.S. House of Representatives 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 ...

for

Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district is located in the Northeastern Pennsylvania, northeastern region of the state. It encompasses all of Wayne County, Pennsylvania, Wayne, Pike County, Pennsylvania, Pike, and Lackawanna County, Pennsylvani ...

from 1821 to 1823 and for Pennsylvania's 13th congressional district from 1823 to 1824. He served as a member of the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four-year terms, stagger ...

for the 14th district from 1815 to 1818 including as Speaker from 1815 to 1816 and as a 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 1810 to 1813 including two terms as Speaker. He served as presiding judge of the

Pennsylvania Courts of Common Pleas In Pennsylvania, the courts of common pleas are the trial courts of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania (the state court system). The courts of common pleas are the trial courts of general jurisdiction in the state. The name derives f ...

for the 16th district from 1824 to 1827 and as an associate judge of the

Pennsylvania Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It began in 1684 as the Provincial Court, and casual references to it as the "Supreme Court" of Pennsylvania were made offici ...

from 1827 until his death in 1830.

Early years and education

In 1779, Tod was born in

Suffield, Connecticut Suffield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, Capitol Planning Region, and located in the Connecticut River Valley. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

, and was educated in the common schools and at

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, ...

. He studied law under his brother George and received his legal certificate around 1799. He moved with his father to

Aquasco, Maryland Aquasco is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in southeastern Prince George's County, Maryland, Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, surrounding the town of Eagle Harbor, Maryland, Eagle Harbor and bordering Charles Co ...

, and began teaching as Assistant Master of Charlotte Hall. In 1802, he moved to

Bedford, Pennsylvania Bedford is a borough, spa town, and the county seat of Bedford County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is located west of Harrisburg, the state capital, and east of Pittsburgh. Bedford's population was 2,865 at the 2020 census. History ...

, was admitted to the bar in 1803 and commenced the practice of law. In 1805, he worked as

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

of Bedford and served as a clerk to the county commissioners of

Bedford County, Pennsylvania Bedford County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 47,577. The county seat is Bedford. The county is part of the Southwest region of the commonwealth. History 18th century According to ...

, in 1806 and 1807.

Career

Tod was a member of the

from 1810 to 1813, serving twice as its Speaker. He served as a member of the

for the 14th district from 1815 to 1818 including as Speaker from 1815 to 1816. In 1820–1821, he was elected to the Seventeenth and then later into the Eighteenth Congress and served until his resignation from Congress in 1824. He served as chairman of the

United States House Committee on Manufactures United States House Committee on Manufactures was a standing committee of the U.S. House from 1819 to 1911. On December 8, 1819, an amendment was accepted in the House to separate the Committee on Commerce and Manufactures into the Committee on ...

during the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Congresses. In March–April 1824, Tod was honored with a single vote at the

Democratic-Republican Party The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed li ...

Caucus to be the party's candidate for

U.S. Vice President The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. Th ...

at the election later that year. Tod served as presiding judge of the Pennsylvania Court of Common pleas for the sixteenth judicial district from 1824 from 1827 and as associate judge of the

from 1827 until his death in 1830. Tod died on March 27, 1830, at about the age of 50 in Bedford, Pennsylvania.

Personal life

In 1810, he married Mary Read Hanna, the daughter of U.S. Representative John A. Hanna, and together they had five children.

Footnotes

Sources

The Political Graveyard
, - , - 1779 births 1830 deaths 19th-century Pennsylvania state court judges 19th-century American lawyers Pennsylvania postmasters County clerks in Pennsylvania Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Judges of the Pennsylvania Courts of Common Pleas Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Pennsylvania lawyers Pennsylvania state senators People from Bedford, Pennsylvania People from Suffield, Connecticut Justices of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania Speakers of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Yale College alumni Politicians from Bedford County, Pennsylvania 19th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives {{Pennsylvania-Representative-stub

Early years and education

Career

Personal life

See also

Footnotes

Sources