Isaac Toucey
Touceyc. 1855-1865
23rdUnited States Secretary of the Navy
In office March 7, 1857 – March 4, 1861
President	James Buchanan
Preceded by	James C. Dobbin
Succeeded by	Gideon Welles
United States Senator fromConnecticut
In office May 12, 1852 – March 3, 1857
Preceded by	Roger Sherman Baldwin
Succeeded by	James Dixon
Member of theConnecticut House of Representatives
In office 1852
Member of theConnecticut Senate
In office 1850–1852
20thUnited States Attorney General
In office June 21, 1848 – March 3, 1849
President	James K. Polk
Preceded by	Nathan Clifford
Succeeded by	Reverdy Johnson
33rdGovernor of Connecticut
In office May 6, 1846 – May 5, 1847
Lieutenant	Noyes Billings
Preceded by	Roger Sherman Baldwin
Succeeded by	Clark Bissell
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromConnecticut
In office March 4, 1835 – March 3, 1839
Preceded by	Noyes Barber
Succeeded by	Joseph Trumbull
Constituency	At-large district (1835–1837) 1st district (1837–1839)
Prosecuting Attorney ofHartford County
In office 1842-1844
In office 1822-1835
Personal details
Born	(1792-11-15)November 15, 1792 Newtown, Connecticut, U.S.
Died	July 30, 1869(1869-07-30) (aged 76) Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Catherine Nichols ​ (m. 1827)​
Signature

Isaac Toucey (November 15, 1792 – July 30, 1869) was an American politician who served as aU.S. senator,U.S. Secretary of the Navy,U.S. Attorney General and the33rd Governor of Connecticut.

Born inNewtown, Connecticut, Toucey pursued classical studies; studied law and was admitted to the bar atHartford, Connecticut, in 1818.^[1] From 1825 to 1835 he had his own practice inHartford, Connecticut. He married Catherine Nichols in Hartford on October 28, 1827. The couple had no children.^[2]

In 1822, Toucey was named prosecuting attorney ofHartford County, Connecticut. He served in that position until 1835, when he was elected to the24th and25th Congresses (at-large and then representing the 1st District). He served from 1835 to 1839. He lost the election of 1838 and returned to his position as prosecuting attorney in 1842.

In1845, Toucey ran for Governor of Connecticut and lost, but theConnecticut State Legislature appointed him to the position following the election in1846. During his tenure, an antibribery bill geared toward eliminating fraudulent electoral procedures was considered. He was defeated in an attempt at re-nomination in 1847.^[3]

In 1848, PresidentJames K. Polk appointed Toucey the 20thAttorney General of the United States, a position he held until 1849. He returned to Connecticut and took a place in theConnecticut Senate in 1850, and then in theConnecticut House of Representatives in 1852.

Toucey was elected to the U.S. Senate for the term commencing March 4, 1851, and served from May 12, 1852, to March 3, 1857, having that year declined to be a candidate for reelection.^[4] During that time, he often served as the legislative point man forFranklin Pierce and his administration.

James Buchanan, with whom Toucey had served in the Polk administration, appointed him U.S. Secretary of the Navy in hisCabinet in 1857 as a sop to the Pierce faction as well as to represent New England in the Cabinet. A moderate Northerner much in line with Buchanan's thought in the sectional controversies of the day, Toucey held that post until 1861 and the arrival of theAbraham Lincoln administration. During that time, Toucey would undergo criticism for alleged corruption as uncovered by theCovode Committee, resulting in him being censured by the House of Representatives in June 1860.^[5] Toucey was then replaced by one of his chief rivals in Connecticut,Gideon Welles. After 1861 he returned to his law practice.

Toucey died in Hartford on July 30, 1869.^[6] He is interred atCedar Hill Cemetery in Hartford, Connecticut.USSToucey (DD-282) was named for him.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toIsaac Toucey.

EnglishWikisource has original text related to this article:

an 1859 review of Toucey's career

• United States Congress."Isaac Toucey (id: T000319)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
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