John Law (politician)

John Law

John Law (born October 28, 1796 in New London , Connecticut , †  October 7, 1873 in Evansville , Indiana ) was an American politician . Between 1861 and 1865 he represented the state of Indiana in the US House of Representatives .

Career

John Law was a son of Lyman Law (1770-1840) and a grandson of Richard Law (1733-1806) and Amasa Learned (1750-1825), who were all congressmen and delegates to the Continental Congress . After a good elementary school education, he studied at Yale College until 1814 . After studying law and being admitted to the bar in 1817, he began to work in his new profession in Vincennes (Indiana). From 1818 to 1820 he worked as a public prosecutor. At the same time he began a political career.

Law was a member of the Indiana House of Representatives from 1824 to 1825 . He then worked again as a public prosecutor until 1828. In 1830 and 1831 he served as a judge in the Seventh District Judge. From 1838 to 1842 he headed the land registry in Vincennes. Until 1850 he worked again as a judge. In 1851, John Law moved to Evansville, where he became a large landowner. He was also active as a writer. From 1855 to 1857 he was a federal judge for land affairs.

In the congressional election of 1860 Law was elected as a candidate for the Democratic Party in the first constituency of Indiana in the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC , where he succeeded William E. Niblack on March 4, 1861 . After re-election, he was able to complete two legislative terms in Congress until March 3, 1865 . These were shaped by the events of the civil war . In 1864 he decided not to run again. After leaving the US House of Representatives, John Law returned to work as a lawyer. He died on October 7, 1873 in Evansville and was buried in Vincennes.

Web links

• John Law in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• John Law in the database of Find a Grave (English)