Gibson Atherton | |
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromOhio's14th district | |
| In office March 4, 1879 – March 3, 1883 | |
| Preceded by | Ebenezer B. Finley |
| Succeeded by | George L. Converse |
| Constituency | 14th district (1879–1881) 13th district (1881–1883) |
| Associate Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court | |
| In office August 20, 1885 – December 16, 1885 | |
| Appointed by | George Hoadly |
| Preceded by | John W. Okey |
| Succeeded by | William T. Spear |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Gibson Atherton (1831-01-19)January 19, 1831[1] Newark, Ohio, US |
| Died | November 10, 1887(1887-11-10) (aged 56) Newark, Ohio, US |
| Resting place | Cedar Hill Cemetery |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Margaret A. E. Kumler |
| Children | four |
| Alma mater | Denison University Miami University |
Gibson Atherton (January 19, 1831 – November 10, 1887) was an American lawyer and politician who served as aU.S. Representative fromOhio from 1879 to 1883.[2]
He was the son of John Trueman Atherton (1799-1882) and Clarissa Ackley (1796-1883).[1] He attendedDenison University,Granville, Ohio.
He graduated fromMiami University,Oxford, Ohio, in 1853. He served as Principal of the local academy atOsceola, Missouri, in 1853 and 1854.
Later he studied law, and wasadmitted to the bar in 1855 and commenced practice inNewark, Ohio where he also served as president of the board of education of Newark for fifteen years.
Atherton was elected prosecuting attorney ofLicking County in 1857 and reelected in 1859 and 1861. While serving as mayor of Newark 1860–1864, he was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for the State senate in 1863. He ran for judge of the court of common pleas in 1866, but was unsuccessful.Other local and national political service included time as member of the city council of Newark for two years and a delegate to the Democratic National Convention atSt. Louis in 1876.[3]
Atherton was elected as aDemocrat to theForty-sixth andForty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1879 – March 3, 1883), but afterwards chose not to seek renomination.[4]
Atherton was appointed to theOhio Supreme Court byGovernorHoadly August 20, 1885 to fill a vacancy created by the death ofJohn W. Okey. He lostelection for the remaining two years of Okey's term that autumn to his Republican opponent, and resigned December 16 of that year.[5]
After retiring from the bench, he resumed the practice of law until his death inNewark, Ohio.
Atherton married Margaret A. E. Kumler inButler County, Ohio on November 18, 1856. They had four children and all were born in Ohio.[5][1]
His eldest daughter, Clara B. Atherton (1858-1939)[6] was an accomplished linguist who worked for the War Department in Washington DC. In 1885 she toured Europe with her parents. It was in Italy where she met her future husband, Emil Reidel. They married in Malta on Mar 17, 1886 and had 2 children.[7]
His other three children were Charles E Atherton (born 1860), Della M Atherton (born 1865) and Anna V Atherton (born 1867).
He died on November 10, 1887. He was interred in Cedar Hill Cemetery.
His grandfather, Thomas Atherton (1765-1848) moved fromPennsylvania to Ohio.
He descended fromQuakers; his great grandfather Caleb Atherton (1736-1776), being a Quaker who was “outed” on Oct 4, 1764 at the Uwchlan Monthly Quaker Meeting for not following their principles and for marrying "out of their Society". Caleb died in the revolutionary war at theBattle of Wyoming. He is related to historian,Lewis Eldon Atherton.
The next generation back had emigrated to Pennsylvania fromFarnworth,Lancashire in the 1700s.[8] He was a direct descendant of Gawain Atherton.[9] His distant Atherton relatives includeBobby Atherton andTommy Atherton.
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromOhio's 14th congressional district 1879–1881 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromOhio's 13th congressional district 1881–1883 | Succeeded by |
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives fromOhio's 14th congressional district | ||
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