Martin Welker (April 25, 1819 – March 15, 1902) was an American politician and judge who 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

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

for three terms from 1865 to 1871 and a

district judge District Judge may refer to: * A United States federal judge, appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate * A judge in a state court (United States), where the state is divided into judicial districts * * A judge in the district courts ...

of the

United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio (in case citations, N.D. Ohio) is the federal trial court for the northern half of Ohio, encompassing most territories north of the city of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus. The court has courthou ...

from 1873 to 1889.

Education and career

Welker was born on April 25, 1819, in Knox County,

. His father was an immigrant from the

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and an early

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an pioneer in Ohio. Welker left the family farm at the age of 14 to take a job as a clerk in a store in Millersburg, Ohio. Smith 1898 Volume I : 76 He attended the common schools and

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

in 1840. He was admitted to the bar and entered private practice in Millersburg from 1840 to 1846. He was clerk of the Holmes County, Ohio, Court of Common Pleas from 1846 to 1851. In 1848, Welker was the Whig nominee for the

31st United States Congress The 31st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1849, ...

, but lost in the largely Democratic district. Smith 1898 Volume II : 329 In 1850, he again was offered the nomination, but declined it. He resumed private practice in Millersburg from 1851 to 1852. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the

33rd United States Congress The 33rd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1853 ...

in 1852. He was a Judge of the Ohio Court of Common Pleas for the Sixth Judicial District from 1852 to 1857. He resumed private practice in Wooster, Ohio in 1857. He was elected the fourth

lieutenant governor of Ohio The position of lieutenant governor of Ohio was established in 1852. The lieutenant governor becomes Governor of Ohio, governor if the governor resigns, dies in office or is removed via impeachment conviction. Before 1852, the president of the Oh ...

and president of the

Ohio Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of t ...

in the Fifty-third General Assembly, serving from 1857 to 1858, elected on the ticket with

Governor of Ohio A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

Salmon P. Chase Salmon Portland Chase (January 13, 1808May 7, 1873) was an American politician and jurist who served as the sixth chief justice of the United States from 1864 to his death in 1873. Chase served as the 23rd governor of Ohio from 1856 to 1860, r ...

. He was a Colonel in the

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from 1861 to 1865, during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Civil War service

With the outbreak of the

, on May 14, 1861, Welker was appointed judge-advocate of the second brigade of the Ohio Volunteer Militia at rank of major and served with General Jacob Dolson Cox. Welker was appointed as an aide-de-camp, with rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

to the Governor of Ohio on August 10, 1861. He then served as Judge Advocate General of the State of Ohio for the balance of 1861 and was the superintendent of drafting under Governor

David Tod David Tod (February 21, 1805 – November 13, 1868) was an American politician and industrialist from the U.S. state of Ohio. As the 25th governor of Ohio, Tod gained recognition for his forceful and energetic leadership during the American Civil ...

, commencing August 15, 1862. He served as assistant adjutant general in 1862. Welker enlisted on February 16, 1865 in the Union Army as a

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in Company I, 188th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered out September 21, 1865.

Congressional service

Welker was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1862 to the

38th United States Congress The 38th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1863, ...

. He was elected as a Republican from Ohio's 14th congressional district to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, 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 Artic ...

of the 39th, 40th and

41st United States Congress The 41st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1869, ...

es, serving from March 4, 1865, to March 3, 1871.1868 Fourteenth District Welker 13,575 Lyman R. Critchfield 13,113 Smith 1898 Volume I : 259 He was not a candidate for renomination to the

42nd United States Congress The 42nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1871, ...

in 1870.

Federal judicial service

Welker received a

recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the President of the United States, president of a Officer of the United States, federal official when the United States Senate, U.S. Senate is in Recess (motion), recess. Under the ...

from President

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

on November 25, 1873, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge

Charles Taylor Sherman Charles Taylor Sherman (February 3, 1811 – January 1, 1879) was an American district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. Education and career Born on February 3, 1811, in Norwalk, Connecticut, Sherman ...

. He was nominated to the same position by President Grant on December 2, 1873. He was confirmed by the

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on December 8, 1873, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on June 1, 1889, due to his retirement.

Other service

Concurrent with his federal judicial service, Welker was a Professor of political science and international law at the

College of Wooster {{Infobox university , image = College of Wooster seal.png , image_upright = .6 , name = The College of Wooster , former_names = University of Wooster (1866–1915) , motto ...

from 1873 to 1890. He also served as President of the Wooster National Bank, Vice President of the Wayne County Fair Board, and member of the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (United States Navy, U.S. Navy), and the United States Marine Corps, Marines who served in the American Ci ...

Death

Welker died on March 15, 1902, in Wooster. He was interred in Wooster Cemetery.

Family

Welker married Maria Armour of Millersburg on March 4, 1841. After she died, he married Flora Uhl of

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, on January 16, 1896. Reed 1897 : 225–228

References

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Welker, Martin Lieutenant governors of Ohio 1819 births 1902 deaths People of Ohio in the American Civil War Union army soldiers Ohio lawyers Judges of the Ohio District Courts of Appeals Judges of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio People from Knox County, Ohio People from Millersburg, Ohio People from Wooster, Ohio United States federal judges appointed by Ulysses S. Grant American militia officers 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio