Henry Chapman | |
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's7th district | |
| In office March 4, 1857 – March 3, 1859 | |
| Preceded by | Samuel C. Bradshaw |
| Succeeded by | Henry C. Longnecker |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1804-02-04)February 4, 1804 |
| Died | April 11, 1891(1891-04-11) (aged 87) |
| Political party | Democratic |
Henry Chapman (February 4, 1804 – April 11, 1891) was an American politician fromPennsylvania who served as aDemocratic member of theU.S. House of Representatives forPennsylvania's 7th congressional district from 1857 to 1859.
Henry Chapman was born inNewtown, Pennsylvania, the son of Abraham Chapman, a lawyer, and Elizabeth Meredith, the daughter of a lawyer.[1] He attended Doylestown Academy and Doctor Gummere's private boys' school nearBurlington, New Jersey. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1825 and commenced practice in Doylestown. He served as a member of thePennsylvania State Senate for the6th district from 1843 to 1846.[2] He was a judge of the fifteenth judicial district from 1845 to 1849.
Chapman was elected as a Democrat to theThirty-fifth Congress. He declined to be a candidate for renomination in1858. He served as judge of theBucks County Court in 1861. He retired in 1871. He died at "Frosterley," nearDoylestown, Pennsylvania.
In 1844, he built theJames-Lorah House, listed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 1972.[3]
Chapman's first wife was Rebecca Stewart.[1][4] Their children were Elizabeth, Mary Rebecca, Henry A., and Thomas Stewart. Elizabeth married the diplomat Colonel Timothy Bigelow Lawrence, son of the extremely wealthyAbbott Lawrence.[5] Mary Rebecca married William Robert Mercer, son of Colonel John Francis Mercer, son of former Maryland governorJohn Francis Mercer. Upon Lawrence's early death, the childless Elizabeth inherited and moved in with the Mercer family, lavishly supporting their children, especiallyHenry Chapman Mercer who became her travelling companion.[6][7][8]
Chapman's second wife was Nancy Findlay Shunk, daughter of GovernorFrancis R. Shunk and Jane, who herself was the daughter of GovernorWilliam Findlay. Their children were Fanny and Arthur.[8] Nancy's sister Elizabeth married CongressmanCharles Brown, their children included a future state Attorney GeneralFrancis Shunk Brown.[9]
The two half-sisters, Elizabeth and Fanny, would be the role models for Madeleine Lee and Sybil Ross in theHenry Adams novelDemocracy.[10]James Michener, who grew up as next-door neighbors to the Mercers in Doylestown, claims Elizabeth "can be taken as the prototype for many of [Henry James'] heroines."[8] A similar claim has been made about Michener's novels also.[4]
| Pennsylvania State Senate | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of thePennsylvania Senate,6th district 1843-1846 | Succeeded by Josiah Rich |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 7th congressional district 1857–1859 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
