Rufus McIntire | |
|---|---|
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMaine's1st district | |
| In office September 10, 1827 – July 2, 1835 | |
| Preceded by | William Burleigh |
| Succeeded by | John Fairfield |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1784-12-19)December 19, 1784 York, Massachusetts, US (nowMaine) |
| Died | April 28, 1866(1866-04-28) (aged 81) |
| Party | Jacksonian Party |
| Residence(s) | Parsonsfield, Maine |
| Alma mater | Dartmouth College, 1809 |
| Profession | Politician,Lawyer, captain, land surveyor |
| Known for | War of 1812, Congressional Service, Aroostook War |
| Signature |  |
Rufus McIntire (December 19, 1784 – April 28, 1866) was aUnited Stateslawyer, captain of U.S. Army artillery in theWar of 1812,congressman,U.S. Marshal, land agent and hostage/prisoner in theAroostook War.
Rufus McIntire was born on December 19, 1784, atYork, Massachusetts (now inMaine). He attendedBerwick Academy and was graduated fromDartmouth College in 1809. After graduation, he read law for three years withJohn Holmes of Alfred, Maine.[1]
Rufus McIntire was admitted to the York County Bar Association in 1812, but when the war with Great Britain intervened, he was commissioned as a captain of aUnited States Armyartillery company (3rd Regiment) during theWar of 1812. McIntire's troops were deployed in northern New York State and Canada and were engaged in significant battles atSackets Harbor,Crysler's Farm andFort Oswego.[2]
He was a voting member in the Brunswick Convention of 1816. In 1820, the year Maine acquired statehood, he was elected to theMaine House of Representatives. In early 1827, he and ex-governor William King were named Maine's members of the commission to establish the boundary with New Hampshire.[3] Later that year, he was elected aUnited Statescongressman to replace the deceasedWilliam Burleigh in theTwentieth United States Congress. He served thereafter in theTwenty-first,Twenty-second, andTwenty-third U.S. Congresses from September 10, 1827, through 1835.
In 1837, McIntire was a candidate for the Democratic party's nomination forgovernor; but at the state convention, he finished second toGorham Parks by a vote of 137 to 167.[4]
McIntire served as the State Land Agent in 1839 and 1840. Because the boundary between Maine andNew Brunswick remained unsettled, he was sent with a posse of militiamen into the disputed Aroostook territory to combat the intrusion of Canadian lumbering operations. On the night of February 12, 1839, McIntire's cabin was surrounded by armed Canadians, who took him prisoner and transported him to jail inFredericton. The incident led to the activation of large militia forces in both Maine and New Brunswick in the affair which became known as theAroostook War.[5]
McIntire was appointed asUnited StatesMarshal forMaine in January 1849 by Democratic PresidentJames K. Polk; but shortly after theWhigZachary Taylor was inaugurated in March of that year, McIntire was removed from the office.[6] He was later appointed Surveyor of Customs inPortland, Maine by PresidentFranklin Pierce, in which position he served from 1853 through 1857.
Rufus McIntire died at the age of 82 inParsonsfield, Maine on April 28, 1866.
Like his legal mentorJohn Holmes, Rufus McIntire was a committed Jeffersonian in his early years. In his first congressional campaign, he ran on the Adams (Anti-Jackson) ticket; but in succeeding terms he ran and served as a stalwart Jacksonian Democrat.[7][8]
Rufus McIntire married Nancy Rolfe Hannaford in 1819. They had eight children, three of whom died in infancy. After Nancy's death on February 2, 1830, Rufus married her sister, Mary B. Hannaford in 1832. They had two children.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMaine's 1st congressional district September 10, 1827 - March 3, 1835 | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
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