Lemuel Paynter (1788 – August 1, 1863) was an American

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 ...

veteran who served two terms as a Democratic 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 ...

from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

from 1837 to 1841.

Life and career

Lemuel Paynter was born in

Lewes, Delaware Lewes ( ) is an incorporated city on the Delaware Bay in eastern Sussex County, Delaware, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 3,303. Along with neighboring Rehoboth Beach, Lewes is one of the principal cities of Del ...

. He moved to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, and served in the

and became major and lieutenant colonel of the Ninety-third Regiment, Pennsylvania Militia.

Early political career

He served as a member of the board of commissioners of the

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

district for many years and also served as a president of the board. He was a member of the guardians of the poor and also a school director. He was elected 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 ...

in 1833.

Congress

Paynter was elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth Congresses. He was not a candidate for renomination in

1840 Events January–March * January 3 – One of the predecessor papers of the ''Herald Sun'' of Melbourne, Australia, ''The Port Phillip Herald'', is founded. * January 10 – Uniform Penny Post is introduced in the United Kingdom. * Janu ...

. He again served as a member of the board of commissioners of the Southwark district.

Death

He died in Philadelphia in 1863. He was buried in Union Sixth Street Cemetery which was closed in 1971 and his remains were moved to Philadelphia Memorial Park in Frazer, Pennsylvania.

Sources

The Political Graveyard
1788 births 1863 deaths Democratic Party Pennsylvania state senators Politicians from Philadelphia American militiamen in the War of 1812 Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania People from Lewes, Delaware American militia officers 19th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives {{Pennsylvania-Representative-stub