Joshua Miller (21 December 1822 – 10 September 1886) was an American politician. Miller was born in

Columbiana County, Ohio Columbiana County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 101,877. The county seat is Lisbon and its largest city is Salem. Created in 1803, the county name is derived from that of 15th-centur ...

to parents John J. Miller and Elizabeth Koontz. Both parents were from Pennsylvania and of German descent. They settled in Ohio prior to the birth of Joshua Miller on 21 December 1822. Aged 12, Miller left for

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

, where he began working as a carpenter. Within five years, Miller had relocated to

Lawrence County, Indiana Lawrence County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 45,011. The county seat is Bedford. Lawrence County comprises the Bedford, IN Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Until the Battle of Tippe ...

. He continued carpentry work in Indiana for six years. Miller subsequently lived in the Missouri Ozarks for one year, then moved into

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

. He settled in

Farmington, Iowa Farmington is a city in Van Buren County, Iowa, United States. The population was 579 at the time of the 2020 census. History Farmington was laid out in 1839. It was named after Farmington, Connecticut. The town was incorporated on January 11 ...

, by 1846, then moved to Appanoose County. In 1844, while a resident of Indiana, Miller joined the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself nationally. In 1939, th ...

and married Rhoda A. Swindler. From 1844 to 1855, he intermittently studied law, and subsequently passed the bar in Centerville in 1856. Wilson was active in the Whig Party until its dissolution, and helped found the Appanoose County Republican Party. He was elected to a two-year term as justice of the peace in 1856. He contested the 1875 Iowa Senate election for

District 4 District 4 can refer to: * District 4, Düsseldorf, in Germany * District 4, Grand Bassa County, in Liberia * District 4 (Ho Chi Minh City), in Vietnam * District 4 (New York City Council), in the United States * IV District, Turku, in Finland *Aus ...

as a Republican, and was elected. By the 1877 election, Miller was redistricted to

District 3 District 3 can refer to: *III District, Turku, in Finland *District 3, Düsseldorf, in Germany *District 3, Grand Bassa County, in Liberia *District 3, Malta, an electoral district of Malta *District 3, a police district of Malta *Wiedikon, also k ...

. He died on 10 September 1886 in Centerville.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Joshua 1822 births American carpenters People from Appanoose County, Iowa People from Van Buren County, Iowa 1886 deaths American people of German descent People from Lawrence County, Indiana People from Columbiana County, Ohio 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century members of the Iowa General Assembly Iowa Republicans Iowa Whigs American justices of the peace Methodists from Indiana Methodists from Iowa