John Breathitt

John Breathitt, painting from 1911

John Breathitt (born September 9, 1786 in Henry County , Virginia , † February 21, 1834 in Frankfort , Kentucky ) was an American politician and governor of the state of Kentucky.

Early years and political advancement

The young John Breathitt was taught in the schools of his rural home, then he studied law. Among other things, he earned the money as a teacher. He was admitted to the bar in 1810, after which he embarked on a legal career in Russellville .

Breathitt began his political career in 1811 when he was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives for four years . At that time he was a member of the Democratic Republican Party . Until 1824 there was no significant opposition. After the reorganization of the party landscape in the 1820s, Breathitt joined the newly formed Democratic Party under Andrew Jackson . In 1828 he was against Joseph R. Underwood for lieutenant governor elected by Kentucky; he was thus the deputy of Governor Thomas Metcalfe .

Kentucky governor

In 1832, Breathitt himself ran for the office of governor. He won the election with 50.9% of the vote against the Whig candidate Richard Aylett Buckner (49.1%). This made him the first Democratic governor of Kentucky. His term of office began on September 4, 1832. As governor, he was guided by his model Andrew Jackson and wanted to transfer his administrative organization from Tennessee to Kentucky, which was not easy. Here Jackson's opponent Henry Clay had more support. The House of Representatives introduced some laws that contradicted Jackson's federal policy. For this reason, the governor vetoed and blocked all initiatives in this direction. During his tenure, the Louisville Bank of Kentucky was founded.

John Breathitt did not live to see the end of his term of office, he died on February 21, 1834 of tuberculosis . He was married twice and had three children in total. The Breathitt County is named after him.

Web links

• John Breathitt in the National Governors Association (English)
• John Breathitt in the database of Find a Grave (English)