David's death

David's death

David Tod (born February 21, 1805 in Youngstown , Ohio , †  November 13, 1868 ibid) was an American politician and from 1862 to 1864 the 25th  governor of the state of Ohio.

Early years and political advancement

Tod attended local schools in his home country and the Burton Academy in Geauga County . After studying law, he was admitted to the bar in 1827. As a result, he became a successful businessman who worked in the railroad, coal and iron business. In 1838 the then Democrat Tod was elected to the Ohio Senate. In 1843 and 1845 he applied unsuccessfully for the office of governor of Ohio. In 1847 he was appointed US ambassador to Brazil by President James K. Polk . He held this office until 1851.

In the following years he devoted himself more to his business interests. In 1860 he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Baltimore . There he stood up for Stephen A. Douglas , whom he also supported in the presidential election. After the election of Abraham Lincoln as US president, Death turned politically. He became a supporter of the Union and supported Lincoln's policies. Tod joined the National Union Party , which existed only during the Civil War and which included most of the Republicans and parts of the Democrats. In 1861 he was elected as the party's candidate for the new governor.

Governor of ohio

David Tod took up his new office on January 4, 1862. His entire two-year term was overshadowed by the events of the civil war. The governor oversaw the recruitment of new soldiers and arms production. He had to get help to the wounded Ohio soldiers. In 1862 the borders of Ohio were threatened twice by the Confederates. However, the military managed to prevent them from entering. Inside, there was increasing unrest, which was triggered by the initially unfavorable course of the war and the associated burdens. Tod's Union Party has meanwhile lost a majority to the Democrats, which made it difficult for him to govern. In July 1863 the war finally came to Ohio when Confederate General John Hunt Morgan advanced with his cavalry into the country and left destruction behind. Governor Tod rejected the drafting of African-Americans to the militia and the army; Nevertheless, the recruitment of the first soldiers from this social class began during his tenure. Towards the end of his tenure, especially after the Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania and the Battle of Vicksburg in Mississippi , both of which took place at the same time in early July 1863, the fortunes of war gradually began to turn north. From now on the Union's troops were on the advance.

Another résumé

After the end of his term in office, President Lincoln offered him the post of Treasury Secretary that had become vacant after the resignation of Salmon P. Chase , but he declined for health reasons. David's death died in November 1868. He was married to Maria Smith, with whom he had seven children. The daughter Charlotte Delamater Tod married the soldier and later General August Kautz on September 14, 1865 in Hamilton County, Ohio .

Web links

• David died at the National Governors Association (English)
• David Tod in the Ohio History Connection Archives