Seabury Ford

Seabury Ford

Seabury Ford (born October 15, 1801 in Cheshire , Connecticut , †  May 5, 1855 in Burton , Ohio ) was an American politician and from 1849 to 1850 the 20th  governor of the state of Ohio.

Early years

Ford moved to Burton, Ohio with his parents when he was still a child. There he attended the Burton Academy . Between 1821 and 1825 he studied at Yale University . After studying law, he began working as a lawyer in Burton. In Ohio he also became a member of the militia, where he made it to major general.

Political career

Ford was a member of the Whig Party , which was in opposition to the Democratic Party . In 1835 he was first elected to the Ohio House of Representatives, where he served three terms. There he was also President of Parliament ( Speaker ) at times . Between 1841 and 1848 he was a member of the State Senate .

In 1848 he was elected the Whigs' last candidate for governor of Ohio. The election result has remained the narrowest result in gubernatorial elections in this state. Ford won by 311 votes over Democrat John B. Weller . The election campaign was marked by the discussion about the question of slavery and the consequences of the war against Mexico . Because of the tight election results, there were recounts and discussions about the validity of the election. Therefore, Ford's inauguration had to be postponed by around six weeks to January 22, 1849.

His two-year term in office was overshadowed by intense domestic political tensions in Ohio. Even when discussing the election, the Democrats and Whigs could hardly agree in the legislature. A major theme of the conflict was the issue of slavery and its spread to the areas that fell to the United States after the peace with Mexico. Governor Ford was an opponent of slavery and a supporter of the Union. During his tenure, Ford was able to achieve little because of these political conditions. However, he succeeded in having the so-called "Black Laws" repealed, which discriminated against African Americans in Ohio. In 1850 a conference was convened to revise the state constitution. Another event during his tenure was a cholera epidemic that struck the country in 1849. Among other things, this illness caused chaos in the Ohio Penitentiary. The governor rewarded prisoners who helped contain the disease with an amnesty. Ford's tenure ended on December 12, 1850.

Another résumé

Shortly after returning home to Burton, he suffered a stroke from which he never fully recovered. The left side of his body remained paralyzed. He died as a result of this attack in May 1855. Seabury Ford was married to Harriet Cook, with whom he had five children.

Web links

Commons : Seabury Ford  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Seabury Ford at the National Governors Association (English)
• Seabury Ford in the Ohio History Connection Archives

• Seabury Ford in the database of Find a Grave (English)