James H. Duncan

James H. Duncan

James Henry Duncan (born December 5, 1793 in Haverhill , Essex County , Massachusetts , †  February 8, 1869 there ) was an American politician . Between 1849 and 1853 he represented the state of Massachusetts in the US House of Representatives .

Career

James Duncan attended Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire and then studied at Harvard University until 1812 . After a subsequent law degree and his admission as a lawyer in 1815, he began to work in Haverhill in this profession. Duncan was also a member of the Massachusetts State Militia, where he was promoted to colonel. He also served as President of the Essex Agricultural Society . At the same time he embarked on a political career. He was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1827, 1837, 1838, and 1857 . Between 1828 and 1831 he was a member of the State Senate . He became a member of the Whig Party , founded in the mid-1830s . In December 1839 he was a delegate to the Whig National Convention in Harrisburg , where William Henry Harrison was nominated as a presidential candidate. In 1841 he became Commissioner in Bankruptcy .

In the 1848 congressional election , Duncan was elected to the United States House of Representatives in Washington, DC in the third constituency of Massachusetts , where he succeeded Amos Abbott on March 4, 1849 . After re-election, he was able to complete two legislative terms in Congress until March 3, 1853 . These were shaped by the discussions about slavery in the run-up to the civil war . After his tenure in the US House of Representatives, Duncan worked in the real estate industry. He died on February 8, 1869 in his hometown of Haverhill.

Web links

• James H. Duncan in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• James H. Duncan in the database of Find a Grave (English)