Peter Dumont Vroom

Peter Dumont Vroom

Peter Dumont Vroom (born December 12, 1791 in Hillsborough Township , New Jersey , †  November 18, 1873 in Trenton , New Jersey) was an American politician and twice governor of the state of New Jersey between 1829 and 1836 . He also represented his state between 1839 and 1841 as a member of Congress .

Early years

Peter Vroom attended the public schools of his home country and then the Somerville Academy . He then studied until 1808 at Columbia College in New York City . After studying law, he was admitted to the bar in 1813. He then began to work in his new profession, initially in Hillsborough and then from 1821 after moving to Somerville .

Political advancement and governor of New Jersey

Between 1826 and 1829 Vroom was a member of the New Jersey General Assembly . At that time he became a member of the newly formed Democratic Party . In 1829 he was elected as their candidate by the legislature for the new governor of his state. He took office on November 6, 1829 and, after being re-elected annually, was initially able to serve until October 26, 1832. The then following term until October 1833 was served by Samuel L. Southard of the Whig Party .

After that, Vroom was re-elected. This time he could remain in office until October 28, 1836. During his reign he supported the construction of the railroad and the construction of the Raritan and Delaware Canal . Politically, his tenure was dominated by the dispute over President Andrew Jackson's policies . It was about the bank and the question of South Carolina evoked nullification crisis . In 1836, Vroom decided against re-election for health reasons.

Further political career

In 1837 Vroom was an Indian agent with the Choctaw tribe and in 1838 he applied for a seat in the US House of Representatives . The elections were controversial and it was only after some discussion that it was clear that Vroom would be one of four Democratic candidates from New Jersey to enter Congress. He represented his state in Washington, DC between 1839 and 1841. In 1840 he was not re-elected. Then he worked as a lawyer again.

In 1844 he was a member of a commission to review the New Jersey constitution. Vroom turned down an appointment as Chief Justice of New Jersey in 1853. Instead, he was President Franklin Pierce , succeeding Daniel D. Barnard to the United States ambassador in Prussia appointed. He held this office between 1853 and 1857. After his return he worked again as a lawyer. In 1861 he was a member of a conference in Washington that tried in vain to prevent the outbreak of civil war at the last minute . He was Secretary of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1861 until his death in 1873. He was also from 1864 administrator of the debt settlement fund of New Jersey. Peter Vroom died in November 1873. He was married twice and had a total of six children.

Web links

• Peter Vroom in the National Governors Association (English)
• Peter Dumont Vroom in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Peter Dumont Vroom in the database of Find a Grave (English)