Joseph Draper (December 25, 1794 – June 10, 1834) was a

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

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

Early life and education

Born in Draper Valley, Wythe (now Pulaski) County, Virginia, Draper attended private schools. He studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1818 and commenced practice in

Wytheville, Virginia Wytheville ( ) is a town in and the county seat of Wythe County, Virginia, Wythe County, Virginia, United States. It is named after George Wythe, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and mentor to Thomas Jefferson. Wytheville ...

. He served as a private in the War of 1812. He served as member of the

Senate of Virginia The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Vir ...

during the period 1828–1830.

Tenure in Congress

Draper was elected as a Jacksonian to the Twenty-first Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of

Alexander Smyth Alexander Smyth (1765April 17, 1830) was an American lawyer, soldier, and politician from Virginia. Smyth served in the Virginia Senate, Virginia House of Delegates, United States House of Representatives and as a general during the War of 181 ...

and served from December 6, 1830, to March 3, 1831. He unsuccessfully contested the election of Charles C. Johnston to the Twenty-second Congress. Draper was subsequently elected to the Twenty-second Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Charles C. Johnston and served from December 6, 1832, to March 3, 1833. He was not a candidate for renomination.

Later life and death

He resumed the practice of law until his death in Wytheville, Virginia, June 10, 1834. He was interred in a private cemetery known as Oglesbies Cemetery, Drapers Valley, Virginia.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Draper, Joseph 1794 births 1834 deaths Virginia lawyers Virginia state senators American military personnel of the War of 1812 Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia 19th-century American lawyers People from Pulaski County, Virginia 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly