Augustus French

Augustus Chaflin French (born August 2, 1808 in Hill , Merrimack County , New Hampshire , † September 4, 1864 in Lebanon , Illinois ) was an American politician ( Democratic Party ) and from 1846 to 1853 the 9th governor of the state of Illinois .

Early years and political advancement

French attended Dartmouth College but was unable to finish school for financial reasons. Nevertheless, he later managed to study law. In 1823 he was admitted to the bar. He then ran a prosperous law firm in Illinois. French's political rise began in 1837 with his election to the Illinois House of Representatives . He stayed there until 1839. Then he got a job with the land allocation authority in Palestine . In 1844 he was a member of the Electoral College , which James K. Polk elected as the new US president . On August 3, 1846, he was elected the new governor of Illinois.

Illinois Governor

Augustus French took office on December 9, 1846. During his four-year tenure, the Mexican-American War continued, which Illinois supported with six regiments and a few volunteer companies. The last Mormons left the state for Utah after the unrest of previous years . The Illinois-Michigan Canal began operating in 1848 and remained open until 1935. The expansion of the railway network continued during French's tenure. On the other hand, the governor had to cut some expenses in order to pay off the national debt. A constitutional reform was also decided, which gave the governor more powers and required elections for all public offices. But even the new constitution did not allow two consecutive terms of office for a governor. Therefore, he had to give up his post on January 10, 1853.

Another résumé

After his governorship, French taught law students at a college in Lebanon. At the same time he worked for a bank. In 1862 he belonged to a commission that was supposed to revise the state constitution again. Augustus French died on September 4, 1864.

Web links

Commons : Augustus C. French - Collection of images, videos and audio files

personal data
SURNAME	French, Augustus
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	French, Augustus Chaflin
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American politician
DATE OF BIRTH	August 2, 1808
PLACE OF BIRTH	Hill , New Hampshire
DATE OF DEATH	4th September 1864
Place of death	Lebanon , Illinois