Richard Taylor Jacob

Richard Taylor Jacob (born March 13, 1825 in Oldham County , Kentucky , †  September 13, 1903 in Louisville , Kentucky) was an American politician . In 1863 and 1864 he was lieutenant governor of the state of Kentucky.

Career

For health reasons Richard Jacob often had to travel in his youth. So he came to South America and then to California . When the uprising against the Mexican administration broke out there, he joined as Captain John C. Frémont and was there when California was occupied by Frémont for the United States. When there was later a court martial against Frémont, Jacob was one of the witnesses in his defense. He married his sister-in-law Sarah Benton, a daughter of US Senator Thomas Hart Benton . Jacob studied law and became a lawyer. He lived in Missouri for a few years before settling on a farm in Oldham County, Kentucky in 1855. He also worked this farm with the help of slaves. Politically, he became a member of the Democratic Party . In 1859 Jacob was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives. In the presidential election of 1860 he supported John C. Breckinridge .

When the civil war broke out , Jacob, despite employing slaves himself, sided with the Union. He set up his own cavalry company and took an active part in some skirmishes. In 1862 he was elected Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky alongside Thomas E. Bramlette . He held this office in 1863 and 1864. He was Deputy Governor and Chairman of the State Senate . The emancipation proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863 led to a break between the governor and his deputy. As a slave owner, Jacob was an opponent of the slave liberation announced by the president. In the presidential election of 1864 , Jacob supported George B. McClellan . During the election campaign, the military commander of the Union Forces for Kentucky declared Jacob to be the enemy of the Union because of his criticism of the government and had him arrested and sent through the fronts to Richmond , Virginia , the capital of the Confederation . He later came to Washington, DC He successfully complained to President Lincoln, who revoked his arrest. He then returned to Kentucky.

In 1867, Richard Jacob ran for the US House of Representatives unsuccessfully . In 1876 he became a tenure judge in Oldham County. At the same time he became a member of the Republican Party . He died in Louisville on September 13, 1903.

Web links

• Richard Taylor Jacob in the database of Find a Grave (English)
• The Political Graveyard
• State History of Kentucky