Theron R. Perlee or Per Lee, (1824–1894), lawyer, soldier, 49er, politician and judge in the territory and early state of

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. Theron R. Perlee was born in

Chenango County Chenango County is a county located in the south-central section U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 47,220. Its county seat is Norwich. The county's name originates from an Oneida word meaning 'large bull-thistle ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He studied law before he enlisted as a lieutenant in Company C of the

1st Regiment of New York Volunteers 1st Regiment of New York Volunteers, for service in California and during the war with Mexico, was raised in 1846 during the Mexican–American War by Jonathan D. Stevenson. Accepted by the United States Army on August 1846, the 1st Regiment of New ...

that came to

during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Second Federal Republic of Mexico, Mexico f ...

. While there he commanded the removal of the garrison of

Sutters Fort Sutter's Fort was a 19th-century agricultural and trade colony in the Mexican '' Alta California'' province.National Park Service"California National Historic Trail."/ref> The site of the fort was established in 1839 and originally called New Helv ...

to San Francisco. After the Regiment was disbanded, he set up a law practice in San Francisco. In February 1849, he was elected as the Justice of the Peace for San Francisco, his first political office. Perlee also edited The Placer Times from June 19, 1849 to August 25, 1849. He resigned so that he could run for the territorial assembly as its representative from Monterey in the fall of 1849. Perlee, a Democrat, relocated to Santa Cruz so that he could represent his district more effectively. Perlee was elected to the California Legislature in 1849 and served in the California State Assembly from December 1849 until April 1850. Perlee served as the first State assemblyman of Santa Cruz County in the first session of the California State Legislature. Perlee resigned in April 1850 when the Legislature appointed him as the first

Adjutant General of California The California National Guard is part of the National Guard of the United States, a dual federal-state military reserve force. The CA National Guard has three components: the CA Army National Guard, CA Air National Guard, and CA State Guard. ...

from April to October 1850. On September 31, 1850, Judge William Blackburn, the first Santa Cruz County judge, resigned his office and Theron R. Perlee became the presiding judge in October of that year. Judge Perlee was succeeded by Henry Rice in June, 1854. Perlee later returned to New York to practice law. He married Mary F. Shinn January 7, 1857 in Highland County, Ohio. In 1875, he was living in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

. He died March 20, 1894 in Togus,

Kennebec County, Maine Kennebec County is a county located in the South-central portion of the U.S. state of Maine. At the 2020 census, the population was 123,642. Its county seat is Augusta, the state capital. The county was established on February 20, 1799, from ...

Genealogy of President Woodrow Wilson from wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com, accessed June 26, 2011
/ref> and was buried in

Rock Creek Cemetery Rock Creek Cemetery is an cemetery with a natural and rolling landscape located at Rock Creek Church Road, NW, and Webster Street, NW, off Hawaii Avenue, NE, in the Petworth neighborhood of Washington, D.C., United States. It is across the stre ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perlee, Theron R. American military personnel of the Mexican–American War People from Chenango County, New York People of the California Gold Rush 1824 births 1894 deaths Burials at Rock Creek Cemetery