James Duane Doty

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James Duane Doty

James Duane Doty (born November 5, 1799 in Salem , Washington County , New York , †  June 13, 1865 in Salt Lake City , Utah ) was an American politician . He was a Congressman and Governor of the Wisconsin and Utah Territories .

Early years

James Doty attended local schools in his home in New York State. After a subsequent law degree, he moved to Detroit in the Michigan Territory in 1818 . There he began to work as a lawyer. At the same time he was friends with the Territorial Governor Lewis Cass , who helped him to a political rise in this area.

Political rise

Between 1823 and 1832 he was a federal judge for the Northern Michigan Territory. In 1824 he moved to Green Bay . During this time he succeeded in establishing at least a basic measure of law and order in this area. At that time he also campaigned for the construction of a road from Green Bay to the then newly created Chicago , which was then to be continued to Prairie du Chien . Between 1833 and 1835, Doty was a member of the Michigan Territorial Parliament. There he was instrumental in the creation of the new Wisconsin Territory. His rationale for establishing the new area was the growing number of immigrants and the distance from the Michigan Territory capital in Detroit.

After he had been able to politically push through his plan in Washington, DC , he hoped to be named the first Territorial Governor of the Wisconsin area by President Andrew Jackson . But he appointed Henry Dodge , one of his political rivals, as governor instead of his , and James Doty began speculating privately on land. The plans to found the capital Madison , which went back to his influence, also emerged. Between 1839 and 1841 he represented his territory in the US House of Representatives before he was named Territory Governor of Wisconsin by President John Tyler in 1841 .

Political career in Wisconsin

As governor, he had a hard time against Henry Dodge's supporters, who blocked almost all of his proposals. In his term of office, which lasted until 1844, he tried a total of four times to allow the country to be incorporated into the USA as a state. In 1844 he was not confirmed in office. President Tyler chose Nathaniel Tallmadge as the new governor. In 1846, when the area was about to join the United States, Doty was a member of the Wisconsin Constituent Assembly. After Wisconsin joined the United States, Doty was elected to the US House of Representatives between 1849 and 1853. He then retired into private life until 1861, but remained in Wisconsin.

Political career in Utah

In 1861 he returned to the political stage. The new President Abraham Lincoln named him that year "Indian Commissioner" for the Utah Territory. When Territorial Governor Stephen S. Harding fell out with the Mormons over polygamy in 1863 and was forced to resign, President Lincoln appointed Doty as the new governor. As governor, Doty succeeded in improving relations between the federal government and the Mormons. Doty also campaigned for the establishment and expansion of a school system in Utah and wanted to negotiate with the Indians of the area. Shortly after it came to a dispute with the locals anyway, Governor Doty died in office in June 1865. He was buried in Salt Lake City.

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Commons : James Duane Doty  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files
personal data
SURNAME Doty, James Duane
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American politician
DATE OF BIRTH November 5, 1799
PLACE OF BIRTH Salem , New York
DATE OF DEATH June 13, 1865
Place of death Salt Lake City , Utah