Thomas Rice (March 30, 1768 – August 25, 1854) 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

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. Thomas Rice was born March 30, 1768, in Pownalborough in the

Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in New England which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of Eng ...

(now known as

Wiscasset, Maine Wiscasset is a New England town, town in and the county seat, seat of Lincoln County, Maine, United States. The municipality is located in the state of Maine's Mid Coast region. The population was 3,742 as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 ...

), to Thomas Rice and Rebecca (Kingsbury) Rice. He graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

in 1791. He studied law and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

Suffolk County, Massachusetts Suffolk County ( ) is located in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 797,936, making it the fourth-most populous county in Massachusetts. The county comprises the cities of Boston ...

, in 1794 and commenced practice in Winslow in Massachusetts'

District of Maine The District of Maine was the governmental designation for what is now the U.S. state of Maine from October 25, 1780, to March 15, 1820, when it was Admission to the Union, admitted to the Union as the List of U.S. states by date of admission to ...

, the following year. Thomas Rice married Sarah Swan on October 22, 1796. He was appointed in 1807 by the supreme judicial court of Maine one of the examiners of counselors and attorneys for Kennebec County. He served as member of 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 ...

in 1814. Rice was elected as a

Federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters call themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of deep ...

to the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Congresses (March 4, 1815 – March 3, 1819). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1818 to the Sixteenth Congress. He resumed the practice of law. After Sarah Swan Rice died September 26, 1840, Rice remarried to Susanna Greene, daughter of Col R. H. Greene, on February 16, 1841, at

Winslow, Maine Winslow is a town and census-designated place in Kennebec County, Maine, United States, along the Kennebec River across from Waterville. The population was 7,948 at the 2020 census. History Winslow was originally an Indian settlement named ...

. To this marriage, he had a son, Thomas III, who was born in 1843. He died in Winslow, Maine, on August 25, 1854. He was interred at Pine Grove Cemetery,

Waterville, Maine Waterville is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, United States, on the west bank of the Kennebec River. A college town, the city is home to Colby College, a New England Small College Athletic Conference, NESCAC college, and Thomas College. As ...

. Thomas Rice was a direct descendant of Edmund Rice an early immigrant to

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1628–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around Massachusetts Bay, one of the several colonies later reorganized as the Province of M ...

as follows: * Thomas Rice, son of :* Thomas Rice (November 27, 1734 - April 21, 1812), son of :* Noah Rice (1705 - Feb 1759), son of ::* Thomas Rice (30 Jun 1654 - 1747), son of ::* Thomas Rice (26 Jan 1625 - 16 Nov 1681), son of :::* Edmund Rice (1594 - 3 May 1663)

References

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rice, Thomas 1768 births 1854 deaths People from Wiscasset, Maine Members of the United States House of Representatives from the District of Maine Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Harvard College alumni People from Winslow, Maine Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court