Alexander C. Hanson | |
|---|---|
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| United States Senator fromMaryland | |
| In office December 20, 1816 – April 23, 1819 | |
| Preceded by | Robert G. Harper |
| Succeeded by | William Pinkney |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMaryland's3rd district | |
| In office March 4, 1813 – 1816 | |
| Preceded by | Philip B. Key |
| Succeeded by | George Peter |
| Member of theMaryland House of Delegates | |
| In office 1811–1815 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alexander Contee Hanson (1786-02-27)February 27, 1786 |
| Died | April 23, 1819(1819-04-23) (aged 33) Elkridge, Maryland, U.S. |
| Party | Federalist |
| Spouse | Priscilla Dorsey |
| Children | Charles Grosvenor Hanson |
| Parent(s) | Alexander Contee Hanson, Sr. Rebecca Howard |
| Relatives | Thomas P. Grosvenor (brother-in-law) |
| Alma mater | St. John's College |
Alexander Contee Hanson (February 27, 1786 – April 23, 1819) was an American lawyer, publisher, and statesman. He represented thethird district ofMaryland in theU.S. House, and the state of Maryland in theU.S. Senate. The town ofHanson, Massachusetts is named after him.
Alexander Contee Hanson was born inAnnapolis, Maryland, on February 27, 1786, the second son ofAlexander Contee Hanson, Sr. (1749–1806) and Rebecca Howard (ca. 1760–1806). His older brother, Charles W. Hanson, later became a judge in Baltimore.[1] His younger sister, Mary Jane Hanson (1791–1815), was married toThomas Peabody Grosvenor (1778–1817), aU.S. Representative from New York.[2] He attended local private schools and graduated fromSt. John's College in Annapolis in 1802.[3]
He was the grandson ofJohn Hanson (1721–1783), a delegate to theContinental Congress who signed theArticles of Confederation and served as the 9thPresident of the Continental Congress, and Jane Contee (1726–1812), herself the granddaughter ofThomas Brooke, Jr. (1660–1730). Through his paternal grandmother's brother,Thomas Contee (1729–1793), he was related toBenjamin Contee (1755–1815) andThomas Contee Worthington (1782–1847),William Grafton Delaney Worthington (1785–1856), andWalter Brooke Cox Worthington (1795–1845). His cousin, Rebecca Thomas (1777–1814), was married to another cousin,Alexander Contee Magruder (c. 1779–1853).[4]
He proceeded to study law, was admitted to the bar, and commenced practice in Annapolis. He was a delegate to theMaryland State Convention of 1788, to vote whether Maryland should ratify the proposedConstitution of the United States.[5] From 1811 to 1815, he served as a member of theMaryland House of Delegates.[3]
Hanson launched theFederal Republican and Commercial Gazette in Baltimore in 1808 and merged it with another publication the following year. TheFederal Republican was known as one of the nation's most extremeFederalist newspapers.[6] On June 22, 1812, four days after the beginning of theWar of 1812, a mob that was irritated by his articles denouncing the administration destroyed his office. On July 28, he reissued the paper from another building, where he was joined by a group of armed allies. When that building was besieged by a mob, Hanson and his group fired, killing two. On the morning of July 29, Hanson and his group surrendered to MayorEdward Johnson, who had come to personally defuse the situation,[7] and were escorted to jail. That evening, the mob stormed the jail, and Hanson was beaten and left for dead.James M. Lingan, a military officer who came to Hanson's defense, died as a result of the violence.[8] Hanson also received help from Revolutionary War Hero and father ofRobert E. Lee,Henry Lee III, who received grave injuries. Another man John Thompson recounts being tarred and feathered by the mob and stated that the rioters brought a field gun to besiege Hanson's house, although the arrival of the mayor and other city officials stopped it from being fired.[9] Hanson moved the paper toGeorgetown, D.C., where he published it unmolested. Hanson later moved toElkridge, Maryland.
In 1812, Hanson was elected as a Federalist representing thethird district to the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Congresses, serving from March 4, 1813, until his resignation in 1816.[10] Hanson was elected a member of theAmerican Antiquarian Society in 1815.[11] He was an unsuccessful candidate in 1816 for election to theMaryland House of Delegates, but was elected as a Federalist to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation ofRobert Goodloe Harper.[12] He served as senator from December 20, 1816, until his own death on his estate,"Belmont", nearElkridge, Maryland. Hanson died without having ever fully recovered from his injuries.[13]
On June 25, 1805, he was married to Priscilla Dorsey.[14] They had many children, but only one lived to have heirs:[15]
He was interred in the family burial ground at his estate, Belmont.[2]
His grandchildren included Alexander Contee Hanson (1840–1857), Mary Worthington Hanson (1842–1863), John Worthington Hanson (1844–1916), Priscilla Hanson (1846–1925), Charles Edward Hanson (b. 1848), Murray Hanson (b. 1851), Samuel Contee Hanson (1854–1889), Grosvenor Hanson (1856–1916), Annie Maria "Nannie" Hanson (1858–1943), and Florence Contee Hanson (1860–1935).[16]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMaryland's 3rd congressional district 1813–1816 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 1) from Maryland 1816–1819 Served alongside:Robert H. Goldsborough,Edward Lloyd | Succeeded by |
| Class 1 |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 3 | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
