David Hazzard

David Hazzard

David Hazzard (born May 18, 1781 in Milton , Delaware ; †  July 8, 1864 ibid) was an American politician and governor of the state of Delaware from 1830 to 1833 .

Early years and political advancement

David Hazzard's schooling was rather modest, but with the help of self-study he taught himself the basics. In 1807 he became a member of the Delaware Militia. There he rose to the rank of captain in 1812. Between 1812 and 1817 he was a Justice of the Peace in Sussex County . In the years 1823 and 1826 he applied unsuccessfully for the office of governor of his state. On October 6, 1829, on the third attempt, he managed to get elected to the highest office in his state. At that time he was a member of the National Republican Party , which had been formed from parts of the former Democratic Republican Party , which Hazzard had also belonged to. The party was later to merge with the Whigs .

Delaware Governor

David Hazzard took up his new office on January 19, 1830. The main event of his three-year term was a constitutional reform passed in 1831. Under the new constitution, governors' terms were extended from three to four years. Direct re-election was excluded. The state senators also received a four-year term, while the Delaware House of Representatives received two-year terms. Until then, their legislative period only ran for one year. The general election date has been moved from October to November. In addition to the constitutional reform, the state's infrastructure was expanded. New roads and bridges were built and the New Castle & Frenchtown Railroad was one of the first railroad companies in the United States. At first, the railway still used wooden rails. The state's judicial system also underwent a renewal at that time. The number of judges has been reduced from nine to five.

In 1831 a slave revolt led by Nat Turner broke out in Virginia , which also caused great concern in Delaware. The free African-Americans , of whom there were about 16,000 in Delaware at the time, came under suspicion of conspiracy. It was feared that they might induce some 3,000 slaves in the state to rebel. Therefore, the immigration of further free African Americans was further restricted and strict conditions were imposed on those already resident. Among other things, they were no longer allowed to carry weapons without a permit and were no longer allowed to gather at night without supervision. Governor Hazzard was the last governor to serve a three-year term under the old constitution.

Another résumé

Even after the end of his governorship, David Hazzard remained politically active. He was a member of the Delaware Senate between 1835 and 1836 and from 1837 to 1838. In 1844 he was the only judge to be appointed to a court in Delaware without ever having received any legal training. He held this office until 1847. In 1852 he was a member of an assembly to revise the state constitution. But he resigned in protest against the election of the committee members from this body. Their draft constitution was then rejected in a referendum. Governor Hazzard died in July 1864. He was married to Elizabeth Collins, the daughter of John Collins , who was also Governor of Delaware from 1821-1822. The couple had five children.

Web links

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