Theodore Stillman Chapman (March 31, 1849–December 12, 1914) was an American politician, lawyer, and businessman. Chapman was born in

Becket, Massachusetts Becket is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,931 at the 2020 census. History Becket was first settled in 1740, and was ...

. He went to Colgate University and then taught school in

LaPorte, Indiana La Porte (French for "The Door") is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, United States, of which it is the county seat. Its population was estimated to be 21,341 in 2022. It is one of the two principal cities of the Michigan City-La Porte, India ...

. Eventually, he settled in

Jerseyville, Illinois Jerseyville is the largest city in and the county seat of Jersey County, Illinois, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 8,337. Jerseyville is a part of Southern Illinois, the Metro-East region and the St. Loui ...

. He studied law in Jerseyville and was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1874. Chapman practiced law in Jerseyville and was president of the Jersey State Bank. Chapman served in the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

from 1885 to 1887 and was a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or again ...

. He then served in the

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the I ...

from 1887 to 1891. He was appointed the first commissioner of the Illinois Pure Food Department Chapman died at St. Luke's Hospital in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

.'Theodore S. Chapman Dead,' Belvidere Daily Republican (Illinois), December 14, 1914, pg. 1

Notes

External links

* 1849 births 1914 deaths People from Becket, Massachusetts People from Jerseyville, Illinois Colgate University alumni Businesspeople from Illinois Illinois lawyers Republican Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives Republican Party Illinois state senators 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century American lawyers {{Illinois-Ilrepresentative-stub