Thomas McKennan

Thomas McKennan

Thomas McKean Thompson McKennan (born March 31, 1794 in New Castle , Delaware , †  July 9, 1852 in Reading , Pennsylvania ) was an American politician of the Whig Party . He belonged to the cabinet of President Millard Fillmore as Minister of the Interior of the United States to, put this office but after eleven days down.

Early years of life

As a child, Delaware-born McKennan moved with his parents to Pennsylvania, where the family settled in Washington . He attended public schools, then graduated from Washington & Jefferson College and was inducted into the bar in 1814, whereupon he began practicing in Washington. Between 1815 and 1816 he briefly held the office of Deputy Attorney General of Pennsylvania.

Political career

From 1830 McKennan worked as a politician. He was elected to the US House of Representatives for the Anti-Masonic Party , to which he was a member until 1839 after being re - elected several times. When he returned to Congress for another year in 1842 , like many other members of the anti-Masonic movement, he had joined the Whigs. Although his party friends in Washington County urged him to run again, McKennan resigned, pointing out that he had now done his duty to the public. It is time to focus on his legal practice again.

In the 1848 presidential election he was a member of the Electoral College , which elected Whig candidate Zachary Taylor to the highest office of the state. When Taylor died a year after taking office and was succeeded by Vice President Millard Fillmore, Thomas McKennan offered the post of Home Secretary. He initially stuck to his refusal to take on public office, but then allowed himself to be persuaded by friends and colleagues. On August 15, 1850, he succeeded the first incumbent Thomas Ewing , but regretted his decision almost immediately. Just eleven days later, he resigned.

During this brief tenure, McKennan managed to put at least a political accent. As Minister of the Interior, he was responsible for the 1850 census , which apparently had irregularities with regard to the privacy of the people interviewed. In a circular to the US marshals used for this purpose , McKennan made it clear that all the facts gathered by the employees were intended solely for the government and should not be used for the financial benefit of the interviewers or to satisfy their curiosity.

After his resignation, Thomas McKennan took on a less strenuous role as President of the Hempfield Railroad Company . This railroad company operated the construction of a line between Wheeling , Virginia and Greensburg , Pennsylvania, which passed through his own residence, Washington. McKennan died on July 9, 1852, while he was in Reading on business. He was buried in the Washington cemetery.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Census Confidentiality and Privacy: 1790-2002 (page 7) (PDF; 106 kB)

Web links

• Thomas McKennan in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Thomas McKennan the Miller Center of Public Affairs of the University of Virginia (English)

• Thomas McKennan in the database of Find a Grave (English)