Samuel Fessenden (July 16, 1784 – March 13, 1869) was an American attorney,

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was Kingdom of France, France in 1315, but it was later used ...

, and politician. He served in both houses of the

Massachusetts state legislature The Massachusetts General Court, formally the General Court of Massachusetts, is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts located in the state capital of Boston. The name "General Court" is a holdover from the earliest days of ...

before Maine became a separate state. He was elected as major general in the state militia. He was considered a leader among his professional peers.

Biography

Fessenden was born on July 16, 1784, in what now is

Fryeburg, Maine Fryeburg is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,369 at the 2020 census. Fryeburg is home to Fryeburg Academy, a semi-private preparatory school, and the International Musical Arts Institute. The town is also si ...

(until 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts). His father was the Rev. William Fessenden, who graduated from Harvard College in 1768 and became the first minister of Fryeburg and was active politically, being elected more than once to the

. His father also served as judge of

probate In common law jurisdictions, probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased; or whereby, in the absence of a legal will, the e ...

. Fessenden received his early education at

Fryeburg Academy Fryeburg Academy is a private secondary school located in Fryeburg, Maine. The academy was founded in 1792, making it the oldest high school in Maine and one of the oldest private schools in the United States. Daniel Webster was one of the fir ...

in his hometown. He graduated from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

in 1806. He then studied law (" read the law") with Judge Dana, of Fryeburg, and

Daniel Webster Daniel Webster (January 18, 1782 – October 24, 1852) was an American lawyer and statesman who represented New Hampshire and Massachusetts in the U.S. Congress and served as the 14th and 19th United States Secretary of State, U.S. secretary o ...

. He was admitted to the bar in 1809.

Career

Fessenden began his law practice at New Gloucester (then part of the state of Massachusetts). He became active in local politics. In 1815-16, Fessenden was elected and served a term as a representative in the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...

. He then was elected to the

Massachusetts State Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the s ...

, serving 1818-19. Fessenden also joined the state militia. After leaving the senate, he was elected as major-general of the 12th division of the Massachusetts (later

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

)

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

. Maine was separated from Massachusetts in 1820 and admitted to the Union as a separate state as part of the contentious

Missouri Compromise The Missouri Compromise (also known as the Compromise of 1820) was federal legislation of the United States that balanced the desires of northern states to prevent the expansion of slavery in the country with those of southern states to expand ...

. In 1822, Fessenden moved with his family to

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

, which offered more opportunities. About 1828, he declined the presidency of

. Fessenden was an ardent Federalist and one of the early members of the anti-slavery party in Maine. In 1847 and

1848 1848 is historically famous for the wave of revolutions, a series of widespread struggles for more liberal governments, which broke out from Brazil to Hungary; although most failed in their immediate aims, they significantly altered the polit ...

, he was a Liberty Party candidate for

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

and governor of Maine. He was an early supporter of the emerging

United States Republican Party The Republican Party, also known as the Grand Old Party (GOP), is a Right-wing politics, right-wing political parties in the United States, political party in the United States. One of the Two-party system, two major parties, it emerged as t ...

. For forty years Fessenden was considered the leader of the bar to which he belonged. He was an active philanthropist. He published two orations and a treatise on the institution, duties, and importance of juries. In 1846, he was awarded the honorary degree of

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...

Family

Three of his sons followed Samuel Fessenden into politics:

William Pitt Fessenden William Pitt Fessenden (October 16, 1806September 8, 1869) was a politician from Maine, United States. He was a Whig (later a Republican) and member of the Fessenden political family. He served in the United States House of Representatives a ...

, who became U. S. Treasury Secretary, and two who were elected as U. S. congressmen, Samuel C. Fessenden, and

T. A. D. Fessenden Thomas Amory Deblois Fessenden (January 23, 1826 – September 28, 1868) was an American politician. He was a U.S. Representative from Maine. __NOTOC__ Biography Born in Portland, Maine, he attended North Yarmouth Academy and Dartmouth Colleg ...

. His son, William Pitt Fessenden, was born on October 16, 1806, to Ruth Greene, who was not married to Samuel (who was a student at the time). William Pitt was raised by his paternal grandparents for seven years. Samuel Fessenden married Deborah Chandler in 1813, and they had several children. The family tree displayed below only shows the offspring of William Pitt Fessenden, however. Two of his grandsons through William became

generals A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED Online. Ma ...

in the Union Army 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 ...

: Francis Fessenden and James D. Fessenden. A third grandson, Samuel Fessenden (January 6, 1841

- September 1, 1862

Centreville, Virginia Centreville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. It is a suburb of Washington, D.C., the nation's capital. It had a population of 73,518, making it the most-populous community in Fairfax County as of t ...

), was mortally wounded at the

Second Battle of Bull Run The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederate ...

. He had been graduated from Bowdoin College in 1861. He also began to study law, but soon entered the military service as second lieutenant in the Second Maine Battery, November 30, 1861. He was promoted to first lieutenant on June 3, 1862, and became aide to Gen. Zebulon B. Tower in July 1862. He died in Portland on March 13, 1869. Samuel Fessenden's cousin, Thomas Green Fessenden, became a noted author and editor.

References

* *
Fessenden Collection, 1786–1982 (bulk 1823–1869)
Bowdoin College Library. This has short biographies of several of the Fessendens. {{DEFAULTSORT:Fessenden, Samuel Abolitionists from Maine Fessenden family American militia generals Hannibal Hamlin Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Massachusetts state senators 1784 births 1869 deaths Maine Republicans Massachusetts Federalists Maine Federalists Maine Libertyites Massachusetts Republicans People from New Gloucester, Maine Politicians from Fryeburg, Maine Politicians from Cumberland County, Maine 19th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court