John W. Houston
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John Wallace Houston (May 4, 1814 – April 26, 1896) was an American lawyer and politician from Georgetown, in Sussex County, Delaware. He was a member of the Whig Party and the Democratic Party, and served as U.S. Representative from Delaware and a Justice of Delaware Superior Court.
Early life and family
Houston was born on May 4, 1814, in Concord, Delaware, attended the country schools and Newark Academy, and graduated from Yale College in 1834. While at Yale he was initiated into one of the earliest gatherings of the Skull and Bones society.[1] He studied law in Dover, Delaware, and was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1837. He then moved to Georgetown, Delaware, in 1839 and commenced the practice of law. He was a slaveholder.[2]
Professional and political career
Houston was Secretary of State of Delaware from 1841 to 1844, and was elected as a Whig to the 29th, 30th, and 31st Congress, serving from March 4, 1845, to March 3, 1851. While in the House he was chairman of the Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds for the 30th Congress. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1850, and was appointed associate judge of the Delaware Superior Court on May 4, 1855, retiring in 1893. Houston was a member of the Peace Conference of 1861, held in Washington, D.C., in an effort to devise means to prevent the impending Civil War.
Death and legacy
Houston died at Georgetown, and is buried in the Lewes Presbyterian Church cemetery at Lewes, Delaware. His nephew, Robert G. Houston, was also a U.S. Representative from Delaware.
See also
Almanac
Elections are held the first Tuesday after November 1. U.S. Representatives took office March 4 and have a two-year term.
| Public offices | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Office | Type | Location | Began office | Ended office | Notes | |
| U.S. Representative | Legislature | Washington | March 4, 1845 | March 3, 1851 | ||
| Associate Justice | Judiciary | Georgetown | May 4, 1855 | 1893 | Delaware | |
| United States congressional service | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | Congress | Chamber | Majority | President | Committees | Class/District |
| 1845–1847 | 29th | U.S. House | Democratic | James K. Polk | at-large | |
| 1847–1849 | 30th | U.S. House | Whig | James K. Polk | Public Buildings and Grounds | at-large |
| 1849–1851 | 31st | U.S. House | Democratic | Zachary Taylor Millard Fillmore |
at-large | |
| Election results | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Office | Subject | Party | Votes | % | Opponent | Party | Votes | % | ||
| 1844 | U.S. Representative | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |John W. Houston | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |Whig | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |6,229 | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |51% | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |George R. Riddle | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |Democratic | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |6,023 | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |49% | ||
| 1846 | U.S. Representative | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |John W. Houston | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |Whig | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |6,254 | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |51% | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |John I. Dilworth | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |Democratic | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |6,007 | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |49% | ||
| 1848 | U.S. Representative | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |John W. Houston | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |Whig | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |6,630 | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |50% | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |William G. Whiteley | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |Democratic | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |6,026 | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |49% | ||
| 1852 | U.S. Representative | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |John W. Houston | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |Whig | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |6,360 | style="background-color:Template:Party color" |44% | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |George R. Riddle | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |Democratic | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |6,692 | style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |50% | ||
References
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- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". "This list is compiled from material from the Order of Skull and Bones membership books at Sterling Library, Yale University and other public records. The latest books available are the 1971 Living members and the 1973 Deceased Members books. The last year the members were published in the Yale Banner is 1969."
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". Updated April 12, 2022.
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Places with more information
- Delaware Historical Society; website; 505 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801; (302) 655-7161.
- University of Delaware; Library website; 181 South College Avenue, Newark, Delaware 19717; (302) 831-2965.
External links
- Biographical Dictionary of the U.S. Congress
- Delaware's Members of Congress
- Find A Grave
- The Political Graveyard
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- Pages with script errors
- 1814 births
- 1896 deaths
- Yale College alumni
- People from Dover, Delaware
- Secretaries of state of Delaware
- Delaware lawyers
- Delaware Whigs
- Members of the United States House of Representatives from Delaware
- Associate judges of Delaware
- Burials in Sussex County, Delaware
- Delaware Democrats
- Whig Party members of the United States House of Representatives
- 19th-century Delaware state court judges
- 19th-century American lawyers
- Members of Skull and Bones
- 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives