John Langdon (politician)

For other people named John Langdon, see John Langdon (disambiguation).

John Langdon
President pro tempore of the United States Senate
In office April 6, 1789 – August 9, 1789 November 5, 1792 – December 2, 1793
President	George Washington
Preceded by	None; first Richard Henry Lee (1792)
Succeeded by	Richard Henry Lee Ralph Izard
United States Senator from New Hampshire
In office April 6, 1789 – March 4, 1801
Preceded by	None; first
Succeeded by	James Sheafe
2nd, 4th, 8th & 10th Governor of New Hampshire
In office June 1, 1785 – June 7, 1786 June 4, 1788 – January 22, 1789 June 6, 1805 – June 8, 1809 1810 – June 5, 1812
Preceded by	Meshech Weare John Sullivan John T. Gilman Jeremiah Smith
Succeeded by	John Sullivan (twice) Jeremiah Smith William Plumer
Personal details
Born	(1741-06-26)June 26, 1741 Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Died	September 18, 1819(1819-09-18) (aged 78) Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Political party	Pro-Administration Anti-Administration Democratic-Republican
Signature

John Langdon (June 26, 1741– September 18, 1819) was a politician from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and one of the first two United States senators from that state. Langdon was an early supporter of the Revolutionary War and later served in the Continental Congress. After being in Congress for 12 years, including serving as the first president pro tempore of the Senate, Langdon became governor of New Hampshire. He turned down a nomination for vice presidential candidate in 1812, and later retired until his death in 1819.

Life and career

His father was a prosperous farmer and local politician, whose family had emigrated to America before 1660 from Sheviock, Caradon, Cornwall,[1] and was among the first to settle near the mouth of Piscataqua River, a settlement which became Portsmouth, one of New England's major seaports. Langdon attended the local grammar school, run by a veteran of the 1745 siege against the French at Fortress Louisbourg in Canada. After finishing his primary education, Langdon served an apprenticeship as a clerk. He and his older brother, Woodbury Langdon, rejected the opportunity to join in their father's successful agricultural pursuits, and went to sea instead, apprenticed themselves to local naval merchants.

By age 22, Langdon was captain of a cargo ship called the Andromache, sailing to the West Indies. Four years later he owned his first merchantman, and would continue over time to acquire a small fleet of vessels, engaged in the triangular trade between Portsmouth, the Caribbean, and London. His older brother was even more successful in international trade, and by 1777 both young men were among Portsmouth's wealthiest citizens.

British control of the shipping industries greatly hurt Langdon's business, motivating him to become a vigorous and prominent supporter of the revolutionary movement in the 1770s. He served on the New Hampshire Committee of Correspondence and a nonimportation committee, and also attended various patriot assemblies. In 1774, he participated in the seizure and confiscation of British munitions from Fort William and Mary.

Langdon served as a member of the First Continental Congress from 1775 to 1776. He resigned in June 1776 to become agent for the Continental forces against the British and superintended the construction of several warships including the Raleigh, the America, and the Ranger, which was captained by John Paul Jones. In 1777, he equipped an expedition against the British, participating in the Battle of Bennington and commanding Langdon's Company of Light Horse Volunteers at Saratoga and in Rhode Island. War ended in 1783.

In 1784, he built at Portsmouth the mansion known as the Governor John Langdon House. Langdon was elected to two terms as President of New Hampshire, 1785–86 and 1788-89. He was again a member of the Continental Congress in 1787 and became a delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1787, serving as a member of the New Hampshire delegation. Langdon was elected to the U.S. Senate and served from March 4, 1789, to March 4, 1801. He was elected the first President pro tempore of the Senate on April 6, 1789, and also served as President pro tempore during the Second Congress.

Governor John Langdon House at Portsmouth, New Hampshire

During the 1787 Constitutional debates in Philadelphia, Langdon spoke out against James Madison's proposed "negative" on State laws simply because he felt that should the Senate be granted this power and not the House of Representatives, it would "hurt the feelings" of House members.

Langdon later served as a member of the New Hampshire Legislature (1801–05), with the last two terms as speaker; he served as governor from 1805–12, with the exception of 1809-10. Langdon declined the nomination to be a candidate for vice president with President Madison in 1812, and later retired. He died in his hometown of Portsmouth in 1819, and was interred at the Langdon Tomb in the North Cemetery.

The town of Langdon, New Hampshire is named after him, as well as Langdon Street in Madison, Wisconsin, a town with several streets named after founding fathers.

References

• United States Congress. "John Langdon (id: L000067)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• "The Founding Fathers: New Hampshire." U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.[2]
• Wright, Jr., Robert K; MacGregor, Jr., Morris J. (1987). "John Langdon". Soldier-Statesmen of the Constitution. Washington, D.C.: United States Army Center of Military History. CMH Pub 71-25. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
• State Builders: An Illustrated Historical and Biographical Record of the State of New Hampshire. State Builers Publishing Manchester, NH 1903

External links

• Governor John Langdon House, Historic New England
• Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Langdon, John" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.