Jersey County, Illinois - Chapter 16: Political Representation, 1919

Chapter 16: Political Representation

DELEGATES TO SECOND CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION - DELEGATES TO THIRD CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION - DELEGATES TO FOURTH CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION - MEMBERS OF CONGRESS - REPRESENTATIVES IN TERRITORIAL

Official Vote Delegates To The Second Constitutional Convention

The Second Constitutional Convention which met at Springfield, Ill., June 7, 1847, had the following delegates from the district embracing Jersey County: Dr. Augustus R. Knapp of Jersey County, and William Barbyshell of Calhoun County. This convention adjourned August 31, 1847, and the results of its deliberations were submitted to a vote of the people, and ratified March 6, 1848. The constitution as written by this convention came in force April 1, 1848. The number of delegates attending it was 162.

Delegates To The Third Constitutional Convention

William H. Allen was Jersey County's representative as delegate to the Third Constitutional Convention, which opened January 7, 1862, and closed March 24, 1862. The constitution written by this convention was rejected at the election held June 17, 1862.

Delegates To The Fourth Constitutional Convention

Judge Robert A. King was Jersey County's delegate to the Fourth Constitutional Convention which opened December 13, 1869, and closed May 13, 1870. This constitution, which is the present one of Illinois, was ratified at the election held July 2, 1870, and came into force August 8, 1870.

Members Of Congress

Jersey County has had the following representatives in the lower house of the National Assembly ; Anthony L. Knapp in the Thirtyseventh and Thirty-eighth Congress, from 1861 to 1865; and Robert M. Knapp in the Forty-third Congress, from 1873 to 1875, and the Fortyfifth Congress, from 1877 to 1879, both of whom were from Jerseyville.

Representatives In The Territorial Assembly

At the time that portion of Illinois now included in Jersey County, was represented in the Territorial Assembly, it was known as Madison County, and as such had Samuel Judy in the council during the first and second session, from 1812 to 1814, inclusively, and in the first session, William Jones was the representative, and in the second, William Raab was the representative. In the third session held in 1816, John G. Lofton represented Madison County in both the council and lower house.

Representatives And Senators In The State Assembly

In the first session of the State Assembly, George Caldwell was the senator, and Abraham Prickett, Samuel Whiteside and John Howard, the representatives, all being from Madison County. In the second and third sessions, George Caldwell was the senator, and N. Buckmaster, Joseph Burroughs and Thomas Rattan, the representatives, and in the third session, Jersey County was included in Greene County. Thomas Carlin was sent to the senate from Greene County in the fourth session. In the fifth, he was also the senator, and he continued to represent Greene County in that body until 1832, when Thomas Rattan was elected and held the office for two terms. The representatives in the fifth session were John Allen and George Churchill; in the sixth, they were Thomas Rattan and John Allen; while in the seventh, they were Charles Greg¬ ory and J. L. Priestly. In the eighth session, the representatives were Lewis W. Link, Samuel C. Pierce, and William Goode, and in the ninth, they were Charles Gregory, L. W. Link, and James Turney. With the tenth session, in 1836, James Turney and John Allen were elected to the senate, and D. A. Cyrus, R. W. English, John Greene and William Lewis to the lower house. M. Boswick, Fkanklin Witt, and James Turney were elected to the senate, and John Allen, R. W. English, John Greene, and Edward N. Daley to the lower house. In 1839, Jersey County was organized, so in the twelfth session which convened in 1840, it. had its own representative, A. W. Caverly, a Whig. In the thirteenth, Samuel T. Kendall, a Democrat, was elected; in the fourteenth, James Harriott, a Whig, was elected ; in the fifteenth, Thomas Cummings, a Whig, was elected; in the sixteenth, Isaac Darneille, a Whig, and Joel Cory, a Democrat, were elected; in the seventeenth, J. C. Winters, a Whig, was elected; in the eighteenth, Giles H. Turner, a Whig, was elected; in the nineteenth, LaFa3Tette McCrellis, a Democrat, was elected. In the twentieth session, 1858-60, Jersey County elected no repre¬ sentative, but was represented in the upper house by Anthony L. Knapp, a Democrat, and he was also in the twenty-second session, while the member of the lower house during the twenty-second and the twentythird sessions, was John N. English. In the twenty-fifth, twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh sessions, William Shephard, a Democrat, w^as elected to the senate, his associate during the last named session being William H. Allen, also a Democrat. In the twenty-fifth session, Robert M. Knapp, a Democrat, was elected to the lower house. In the twentyseventh session, George W. Herdman, Robert A. King, both Democrats, were elected to the lowTer house from Jersey County. In the twentyeighth, William McAdams,- a Democrat, was elected to the lower house : and in the twenty-ninth, Oliver P.- PowTell, also a Democrat, was elected to the lower house. George W. Herdman and John N. English, both Democrats, were elected to the senate and lower house, respectively, from Jersey County for the thirtieth, and Mr. English succeeded him¬ self in the thirty-first, his associate, a Republican, being George E. Warren, and Mr. English was re-elected in 1880. Walter E. Carlin was elected a representative to the thirty-third session ; and Theodore S. Chapman and Henry C. Massey, the former a Republican the latter a Democrat, were elected to the lower house of the thirty-fourth session. Theodore S. Chapman was elected to the thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth sessions as a senator on the Republican ticket. In the thirty-seventh, thirty-eighth and thirty-ninth sessions, Thomas F. Ferns, a Democrat, was in the lower house from Jersey County, and in the thirty-eighth and thirty-ninth his associate was Orville A. Snedeker, a Republican. Jesse K. Cadwallader, a Republican, was elected to the lowrer house of the forty-first session; John A. Shephard, a Democrat, was elected to the lower house of the forty-second ; since which time, Henry A. Shephard has been Jersey County's representative in the lower house.

but the other candidates who were not, as their friends may be inter¬ ested in knowing the prominent characters of those days, aspiring to hold office in the county and district.

Election, August, 1843

nell, 293. School commissioner - James Harriot (no opposition), 695. Surveyor - James A. Potts (no opposition), 700. Treasurer and asses¬ sor - Colonel Edsall, 605 - 76; John R. Black, 425.

Election, 1851

On the adoption of the general banking law - For the banking law, 216 ; against the banking law, 237 - 21. County treasurer - Solomon Calhoun, 411 - 411. Surveyor - James A. Potts, 452 - 445; T. Hurneslaw, 7. School commissioner - Hiram Bridges, 315 - 221 ; E. J. Palmer, 94.

Election, 1852 Special Election, March, 1853

On the question of the county subscribing $50,000.00 toward the capital stock of the Jacksonville & Carrollton Railroad - For the sub¬ scription, 1,036 - 798 ; against the subscription, 238.

Election, November, 1853 Election, November, 1854

On the question of prohibiting the sale of intoxicating liquors - For prohibition, 841 - 343; against prohibition, 498. Judge of the circuit court - D. M. Woodson, 1,136 - 1,136.

Election, July, 1870

On the question of a new constitution - For the measure, 557 - 59 ; against the measure, 187.. Supreme judge - Anthony Thornton, 763 - 576; Aaron Shaw, 187.

Election, November, 1870 Election, November, 1872

Special Election, February 15, 1873 - Sheriff (to fill vacancy caused by death of C. H. Bowman) - Stephen H. Bowman, 1,167 - 7 ; Emmor Brinton, 1,160.

625; A. H. Barrett, Republican, 1,392. Coroner - John S. Williams, Democrat, 2,150 - 823; Thomas A. Kingston, Republican, 1,327. County commissioner - John W. Evans, Democrat, 1,986 5/2; Brook Stafford,

Election, August, 1877 Election, November, 1877

County judge - Robert A. King, Democrat, 2,768 - 2,668; William H. Pogue, Prohibitionist, 100. Clerk - James Eads, Democrat, 1,445 - 17 ; Harry C. Allen, Republican, 1,428; Pearl Combs, Prohibitionist, 37. Treasurer - Thomas O'Donnell, Democrat, 1,469 - 76; M. W. Nelson, Prohibitionist, 38; John P. Stout, Republican, 1,355. Superintendent of schools - Lott Pennington, Democrat, 1,577 - 299 ; Leonard M. Cut¬ ting, Republican, 1,278; John A. Blennerhasset, Prohobitionist, 35. County commissioner - William L. Ruyle, Democrat, 1,419 - 14; Archi¬ bald Craig, Republican, 1,405; William R. Mears, Prohibitionist, 36. On the queston of an appropriation to complete the state capitol, for the measure, 935 - 151 ; against the measure, 784.

536; William McBride, Prohibitionist, 62; John W. Vinson, Independent, 521. Coroner - John S. Williams, Democrat, 1,663 - 1,049 ; John T. Cur¬ tiss, Republican, 614; William Bowker, Prohibitionist, 57 ; E. L. Harriott, Independent, 465. County commissioner - Samuel B. Foree, 1,440 - 375; Ephraim Chappell, 665 H. N. Belt, 687 ; P. D. Cheney, 1. On the ques¬ tion of township organization, for the measure, 1,459 - 367 ; against the measure, 1,092. On the question of an amendment to the constitution, for the measure, 1,925 - 1,827 ; against the measure, 158. On the question of domestic animals running at large, for the measure, 1,312 - 113; against the measure, 1,199.

Congress - James M. Riggs, Democrat, 1,566 - 795; James W. Singleton, Republican, 771 ; Philip N. Minear, Greenback, 349. Superintendent of public instruction - Henry Raab, Democrat, 1,663 - 618 ; Charles T. Stratton, Republican, 1,045; Elizabeth B. Brown, Greenback, 21. State treasurer, Alfred Orendorff, Democrat, 1,664 - 624; John C. Smith, Re¬ publican, 1,040; John G. Irwin, Greenback, 19. Senator, Frank M. Bridges, Democrat, 1.658 - 611 ; Thomas H. Smith, Republican, 1,047. Representatives - AYalter F. Carlin, Democrat, 2,581 - y2 ; George W. Murray, Democrat, 2,391; John II. Coats, Republican, 3,094; Duncan C. Mclver, Republican, 6. On the question of an appropriation to complete the state capitol, for the measure, 1,631 - 1,108; against the measure, 523. On the question of ceding the Illinois and Michigan canal to the United States, for the measure, 1,154 - 420 ; against the measure, 734. County judge - William II. Pogue, 1,487 - 336; Oscar B. Hamilton, Re¬ publican, 1,151. Clerk - James Eads, Democrat, 1,493 - 297; Edson A.