John Y. Mason
John Y. Mason | |
---|---|
United States Minister to France | |
In office January 22, 1854 – October 3, 1859 | |
President | Franklin Pierce James Buchanan |
Preceded by | William Cabell Rives |
Succeeded by | Charles J. Faulkner |
16th and 18th United States Secretary of the Navy | |
In office September 10, 1846 – March 4, 1849 | |
President | James K. Polk |
Preceded by | George Bancroft |
Succeeded by | William Ballard Preston |
In office March 26, 1844 – March 4, 1845 | |
President | John Tyler |
Preceded by | Thomas Walker Gilmer |
Succeeded by | George Bancroft |
18th United States Attorney General | |
In office March 5, 1845 – October 16, 1846 | |
President | James K. Polk |
Preceded by | John Nelson |
Succeeded by | Nathan Clifford |
Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia | |
In office March 3, 1841 – March 23, 1844 | |
Appointed by | Martin Van Buren |
Preceded by | Peter Vivian Daniel |
Succeeded by | James Dandridge Halyburton |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia's 2nd district | |
In office March 4, 1831 – January 11, 1837 | |
Preceded by | James Trezvant |
Succeeded by | Francis E. Rives |
Personal details | |
Born | John Young Mason April 18, 1799 Hicksford, Virginia, U.S. |
Died | October 3, 1859 Paris, French Empire | (aged 60)
Resting place | Hollywood Cemetery Richmond, Virginia |
Political party | Democratic |
Education | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (A.B.) Litchfield Law School read law |
John Young Mason (April 18, 1799 – October 3, 1859) was a United States Representative from Virginia, the 16th and 18th United States Secretary of the Navy, the 18th Attorney General of the United States, United States Minister to France and a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Early life[]
Mason was born on April 18, 1799 in Hicksford (now Emporia) in Greensville County, Virginia,[1]
He received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1816 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, attended Litchfield Law School and read law in 1819.[1]
Career[]
Mason entered private practice in Greensville County from 1819 to 1821.[1] He continued private practice in Southampton County, Virginia from 1821 to 1831.[1] He was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates from 1823 to 1827, and a member of the Senate of Virginia from 1827 to 1831.[1] He was commonwealth's attorney for Greensville County from 1827 to 1831.[1] He was a delegate to the Virginia constitutional conventions of 1829 and 1850.[2] In 1847, he was elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society.[3]
Congressional service[]
Mason was elected as a Jacksonian Democrat from Virginia's 2nd congressional district to the United States House of Representatives of the 22nd, 23rd and 24th United States Congresses and served from March 4, 1831, until his resignation January 11, 1837.[2] He was Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs for the 24th United States Congress.[2] Following his departure from Congress, he resumed private practice in Hicksford from 1837 to 1841.[1]
Federal judicial service[]
Mason was nominated by President Martin Van Buren on February 26, 1841, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia vacated by Judge Peter Vivian Daniel.[1] He was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 2, 1841, and received his commission on March 3, 1841.[1] His service terminated on March 23, 1844, due to his resignation.[1]
Later career[]
Mason was appointed the 16th United States Secretary of the Navy in the Cabinet of President John Tyler and served from March 14, 1844, to March 10, 1845, and again as the 18th Secretary in the Cabinet of President James K. Polk from September 9, 1846, to March 7, 1849.[2] He was the 18th Attorney General of the United States from March 11, 1845, to September 9, 1846.[2] He resumed the practice of law in Richmond, Virginia from 1849 to 1854.[1] He was appointed United States Minister to France for the United States Department of State and served from January 22, 1854, until his death.[2]
Personal life[]
Mason married Mary Ann Fort, the daughter of a prominent land-owner, in 1821 and became a planter himself, as well as continuing as a lawyer. He owned Fortsville located near Grizzard, Sussex County, Virginia.[4]
Mason died on October 3, 1859, in Paris in the French Empire.[1] His remains were conveyed to the United States and interred in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond.[2]
Honors[]
USS Mason (DD-191) from 1920 to 1940, and USS Mason (DDG-87) from 2003 to present, were named in honor of Secretary of the Navy John Y. Mason, sharing the honor on DDG-87 with another individual of the same last name.[citation needed]
Electoral history[]
- 1831; Mason was elected with 57.88% of the vote, defeating Independent Richard Eppes.[citation needed]
- 1833; Mason was re-elected unopposed.[citation needed]
- 1835; Mason was re-elected with 72.13% of the vote, defeating Whig John Urquehart.[citation needed]
See also[]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l John Young Mason at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g United States Congress. "John Y. Mason (id: M000220)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- ^ "APS Member History". search.amphilsoc.org. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
- ^ Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission Staff (March 1970). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Fortsville" (PDF). Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 24, 2015. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
Further reading[]
- Williams, Frances Leigh (1967). "The Heritage and Preparation of a Statesman, John Young Mason, 1799–1859". Virginia Magazine of History and Biography. 75 (3): 305–330. JSTOR 4247323.
External links[]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to John Y. Mason. |
- United States Congress. "John Y. Mason (id: M000220)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Mason, John Young". Encyclopædia Britannica. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 840. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
- John Young Mason at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
- 1799 births
- 1859 deaths
- American planters
- Burials at Hollywood Cemetery (Richmond, Virginia)
- Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- United States federal judges appointed by Martin Van Buren
- 19th-century American judges
- People from Greensville County, Virginia
- Polk administration cabinet members
- Members of the Virginia House of Delegates
- Members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia
- Ambassadors of the United States to France
- United States Attorneys General
- United States Secretaries of the Navy
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni
- Virginia lawyers
- Virginia state senators
- Virginia Jacksonians
- Virginia Democrats
- Tyler administration cabinet members
- 19th-century American diplomats
- Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives
- 19th-century American politicians
- United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law