David Hall (politician, 1752)

David Hall (born January 4, 1752 in Lewes , Delaware Colony , †  September 18, 1817 ibid) was an American politician and governor of the state of Delaware from 1802 to 1805 .

Early years and political advancement

After finishing school, David Hall studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1773. Hall was also a member of the local militia. During the Revolutionary War , he joined a Delaware infantry regiment. In the course of the war he rose to the position of colonel and regimental commander. He took part in several battles and was seriously wounded in the meantime. After the end of the war he worked as a lawyer.

Hall joined the Democratic-Republican Party of Thomas Jefferson at. This party was in the minority in his home country. In 1798 he first applied for the office of governor of Delaware. In these elections he lost clearly to Richard Bassett , the federalist candidate . But three years later he was the first candidate of his party to make the leap to the highest office in the state of Delaware. He was able to beat his future successor Nathaniel Mitchell by a wafer-thin margin of 18 votes.

Governor and judge

After his election victory on October 6, 1801, David Hall was inducted into his three-year term on January 19, 1802. Some administrative committees were newly appointed during his reign. The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Company was also established. After his term in office, Hall was not allowed to run again directly for constitutional reasons. Therefore, he resigned on January 15, 1805 from his office.

In 1812, Hall ran unsuccessfully for a seat in Congress . A year later he became a judge on an appeals court. He held this office until 1817. Governor Hall died on September 18, 1817 and was buried in Lewes. He had five daughters with his wife, Catherine Tingley. His daughter Jane later married John Collins , who was also to become governor of Delaware between 1821 and 1822.

Web links

• David Hall in the National Governors Association (English)
• The governors of Delaware (English)
• David Hall in the database of Find a Grave (English)