Joseph Bradley Varnum | |
|---|---|
 | |
| President pro tempore of the United States Senate | |
| In office December 6, 1813 – February 3, 1814 | |
| Preceded by | William H. Crawford |
| Succeeded by | John Gaillard |
| 6th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives | |
| In office October 26, 1807 – March 3, 1811 | |
| Preceded by | Nathaniel Macon |
| Succeeded by | Henry Clay |
| United States Senator fromMassachusetts | |
| In office June 29, 1811 – March 3, 1817 | |
| Preceded by | Timothy Pickering |
| Succeeded by | Harrison Gray Otis |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts | |
| In office March 4, 1795 – June 29, 1811 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | William M. Richardson |
| Constituency | 9th district (1795–1803) 4th district (1803–11) |
| Member of theMassachusetts Senate | |
| In office 1789–1795 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 29, 1750/1751 |
| Died | September 21, 1821(1821-09-21) (aged 70–71) Dracut, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Resting place | Varnum Cemetery, Dracut |
| Political party | Democratic-Republican |
| Children | 12 |
| Signature | .png) |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | Massachusetts Militia |
| Battles/wars | American Revolutionary War |
Joseph Bradley Varnum (January 29, 1750/1751 – September 21, 1821) was an American politician fromMassachusetts. He served as aU.S. representative andUnited States senator, and held leadership positions in both bodies. He was a member of theDemocratic-Republican Party.
Born inDracut in theProvince of Massachusetts Bay, Varnum was the son of farmer, militia officer and local official Samuel Varnum and Mary Prime. He received a limited formal education, but became a self-taught scholar. Varnum became a farmer, and at age 18 received his commission as a captain in the Massachusetts militia. He commanded Dracut's militia company during theAmerican Revolution and remained in the militia afterwards, eventually attaining the rank of major general in 1805.
Varnum took part in the government of Massachusetts following independence, including as a member of theMassachusetts House of Representatives from 1780 to 1785 and a member of theMassachusetts State Senate from 1786 to 1795. Despite not being an attorney, Varnum also served as a judge, including terms as a Justice of the Massachusetts Court of Common Pleas and Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Court of General Sessions. He was a member of the U.S. House from 1795 to 1811, and wasSpeaker of the House from 1807 to 1811. Varnum served in the U.S. Senate from 1811 to 1817, and was the Senate'spresident pro tempore from 1813 to 1814.
After leaving the U.S. Senate, Varnum served in the Massachusetts State Senate until his death. He died in Dracut on September 21, 1821, and was buried at Varnum Cemetery in Dracut.
.jpg)
Joseph Bradley Varnum was born inDracut, Massachusetts, in Middlesex County, on January 29, 1750, or 1751.
At the age of eighteen, he was commissioned as a captain by the committee ofMassachusetts Bay Colony, and in 1787 colonel by theCommonwealth of Massachusetts. He was made brigadier general in 1802, and in 1805 major general of the state militia, holding the latter office at his death in 1821.
After serving in theMassachusetts militia during theAmerican Revolutionary War, Varnum helped to destroy theShays insurrection before he was elected to theMassachusetts House of Representatives (1780–1785) and then theMassachusetts State Senate (1786–1795). He also served as a Justice of the Massachusetts Court of Common Pleas and as Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Court of General Sessions. Before his election to Congress in 1794, he had run unsuccessfully twice — in 1788 to represent the3rd congressional district,[1] and in 1792 to represent theMiddlesex County seat in the1st congressional district.[2]
In 1794, Varnum was elected to theU.S. House of Representatives, where he served from March 4, 1795, until his resignation on June 29, 1811. He was one of six Democratic-Republican representatives to oppose theTwelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.[3] During his last four years in the House, he served as itsSpeaker.
Varnum was elected to theU.S. Senate in 1811 to fill the vacancy in the term. He became the only U.S. Senator from theDemocratic-Republican Party in Massachusetts history.
Varnum served asPresidentpro tempore of the U.S. Senate from December 6, 1813, to February 3, 1814, during theThirteenth Congress. He was also the Chair of the Senate Committee on Militia during theFourteenth Congress.
After returning to Massachusetts in 1817, Varnum again served in the Massachusetts State Senate, until his death on September 21, 1821.
Varnum died in Dracut, and is interred in Varnum Cemetery in that town. His brother was Major GeneralJames Mitchell Varnum who commanded the1st Rhode Island Regiment from 1775 to 1777, served as a brigade commander at theBattle of Rhode Island and later served as the major general in command of the Rhode Island Militia.
Henry Wilson, in hisHistory of Slavery, quotes Varnum in the debate on the bill for the government of theMississippi Territory before theUnited States House of Representatives in March 1798 as having been very strong and outspoken in his opposition to Negro servitude. Varnum developed a strong friendship withSilas Royal, a former slave freed by the Varnum family, who also served with him during the war.
On March 3, 1805, Varnum submitted a Massachusetts Proposition to amend the Constitution[note 1]and Abolish the Slave Trade.This proposition was tabled until 1807, when under Varnum's leadershipthe amendment moved through Congress and passed both houses on March 2, 1807. President Thomas Jefferson signed it into law on March 3, 1807.[note 2]
Attribution:
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Democratic-Republican nominee forGovernor of Massachusetts 1813 | Succeeded by Lemuel Dexter |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by First New constituency | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 9th congressional district March 4, 1795 – March 3, 1803 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 4th congressional district March 4, 1803 – June 29, 1811 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Speaker of the United States House of Representatives October 26, 1807 – March 4, 1809 May 22, 1809 – March 3, 1811 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 2) from Massachusetts June 29, 1811 – March 3, 1817 Served alongside:James Lloyd,Christopher Gore,Eli P. Ashmun | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President pro tempore of the United States Senate December 6, 1813 – February 3, 1814 | Succeeded by |
|  | |
| Class 1 |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 2 | ||
|  | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
