Joseph Desha

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joseph Desha, painting from 1908

Joseph Desha (born October 9, 1768 in Monroe County , Province of Pennsylvania , † October 12, 1842 in Georgetown , Kentucky ) was an American politician ( Democratic Republican Party ) and governor of the state of Kentucky.

Early years and advancement

Desha's schooling was rather modest. As early as 1779 he and his parents came to what would later become Kentucky, which at that time still belonged to Virginia . From 1782 to 1792, the family lived in Gallatin ( Tennessee ) before in Mason County settled in Kentucky. The young Desha began a military career. Under the generals Anthony Wayne and William Henry Harrison he fought against the Indians in 1794, he was also involved in 1813 as major general in the battle of the Thames River .

Political career

Desha's political career began in 1797 when he was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives , which he served until 1802. He then sat in the Kentucky Senate until 1807 . For the next twelve years until 1819 he was a member of the United States House of Representatives in Washington . In the gubernatorial election in 1820 he was defeated by his rival John Adair with just 546 votes behind .

Desha ran again in the following election in 1824 for the office and won this time with 59.9% of the vote before Christopher Tompkins (34.5%) and William Russell (6%). His four-year term began on August 24, 1824 and lasted until August 26, 1828. It was overshadowed by several events. On the one hand, he urged Horace Holley , the president of Transylvania University , to resign because of his “too liberal ideas”, and on the other hand pardoned his son, who had been convicted of murder. In addition, his tenure was overshadowed by a legal dispute over the validity of laws. This went so far that even a court of justice was suspended and a new one was created by Desha. But this could not hold because the parliament finally confirmed the old court with a large majority.

Old age and death

After the end of his tenure, Desha retired from public life to his farm. He died there in October 1842 and was buried in the Georgetown cemetery. Joseph Desha was married to Margaret Bledsoe. The couple had two children. He was the older brother of Robert Desha (1791-1849), who was between 1827 and 1831 Congressman for the State of Tennessee .

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Desha, Joseph
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American politician
DATE OF BIRTH October 9, 1768
PLACE OF BIRTH Monroe County , Pennsylvania
DATE OF DEATH October 12, 1842
Place of death near Georgetown , Kentucky