Richard Brodhead | |
|---|---|
From 1856'sPortraits of United States Senators with a Biographical Sketch of Each | |
| United States Senator fromPennsylvania | |
| In office March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1857 | |
| Preceded by | Daniel Sturgeon |
| Succeeded by | Simon Cameron |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's10th district | |
| In office March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1849 | |
| Preceded by | William Simonton |
| Succeeded by | Milo M. Dimmick |
| Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives | |
| In office 1837-1839 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1811-01-05)January 5, 1811 |
| Died | September 16, 1863(1863-09-16) (aged 52) |
| Political party | Democratic |
Richard Brodhead (January 5, 1811 – September 16, 1863) was an American lawyer and politician fromEaston, Pennsylvania. He representedPennsylvania in both theU.S. House (1843 to 1849) andSenate (1851 to 1857).
He was the father of U.S. RepresentativeJefferson Davis Brodhead, who also represented Pennsylvania.
Richard Brodhead was born inLehman Township, Pennsylvania, the son of Hannah (Drake) and Richard Brodhead, Sr. Brodhead moved toEaston, Pennsylvania in 1830. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1836 and commenced practice in Easton. He was a member of thePennsylvania State House of Representatives from 1837 to 1839. He was appointed treasurer ofNorthampton County, Pennsylvania in 1841. His wife was Mary Jane Davis Bradford, a niece of Jefferson Davis of Mississippi.
Brodhead was elected as a Democrat to theTwenty-eighth,Twenty-ninth, andThirtieth Congresses. He served as chairman of theUnited States House Committee on Revolutionary Pensions during the Twenty-ninth Congress. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1848.
Brodhead waselected as a Democrat to theUnited States Senate. He served as chairman of theUnited States Senate Committee on Claims during theThirty-second andThirty-third Congresses. and theUnited States Senate Committee on Revolutionary Claims duringThirty-second Congress. He died in Easton in 1863. He is interred in theEaston Cemetery.
He was the most recent resident of theLehigh Valley area to serve as United States Senator from Pennsylvania until the election ofPat Toomey in 2010.[1]
Commemorative Biographical Record of Northeastern Pennsylvania, including the Counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe (Chicago: J. H. Beers, 1900), 80–1;Papers of Jefferson Davis 1:520-1; 1:279, n20.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 10th congressional district 1843–1849 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 1) from Pennsylvania 1851–1857 Served alongside:James Cooper,William Bigler | Succeeded by |