Jonathan Dayton Totally Explained

Everything about Jonathan Dayton totally explained

Jonathan Dayton (October 16 1760 – October 9 1824) was an American politician from the U.S. state of New Jersey. He was the youngest person to sign the United States Constitution and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, serving as the third Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and later the U.S. Senate. Dayton was arrested in 1807 for treason in connection with Aaron Burr's conspiracy, he was never tried, but his national political career never recovered.
   Dayton was born in Elizabethtown (now Elizabeth) in New Jersey. He was the son of Elias Dayton, a merchant who was prominent in local politics. He graduated in 1776 from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University). During the Revolutionary War Dayton served under his father in the 3rd New Jersey Regiment and attained the rank of captain by the age of 19.
   After the war, Dayton studied law and established a practice, dividing his time between land speculation, law, and politics. After serving as a delegate to the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention (of which he was the youngest member, at the age of 26), he became a prominent Federalist legislator. He was a member of the New Jersey General Assembly from 1786-1787, and again in 1790, and served in the New Jersey State Council (now the New Jersey Senate) in 1790.
   Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1789, he didn't take his seat, but was elected and took his seat in 1791. He served as speaker for the Fourth and Fifth Congress. Like most Federalists, he supported the fiscal policies of Alexander Hamilton, and suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion. He supported the Louisiana Purchase and opposed the repeal of the Judiciary Act of 1801.
   Dayton met with Aaron Burr in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and became involved in a "conspiracy" in which Burr later had been accused of intending to conquer parts of what is now the western United States. (This was never proven.) An illness prevented Dayton from accompanying Burr's aborted 1806 expedition, but in 1807 Dayton was arrested for treason. He was released and never brought to trial but his national political career never recovered.
   He married Susan Williamson and had two daughters but their marriage date is unknown.
   After resuming his political career in New Jersey, he died in 1824 in his hometown and was interred in a vault in St. John's Episcopal Churchyard in Elizabeth.

Dayton, Ohio

The city of Dayton, Ohio, was named after him because he owned 250,000 acres (1,000 km²) of land in Ohio and because he supported the building of the Miami Canal without hesitation. However, Jonathan Dayton never set foot in the city.

Legacy

The Jonathan Dayton High School in Springfield Township, Union County, New Jersey, was named for him.

Political career

New Jersey General Assembly, 1786–1787, 1790
- Speaker, 1790
Delegate to Federal Constitutional Convention, 1787
Delegate to Continental Congress, 1787–1788
New Jersey State Council, 1790
United States House of Representatives, March 4, 1791 – March 4, 1799
- Speaker of the House, Fourth and Fifth Congresses
- Chairman of Committee on Elections, Third Congress
United States Senate, March 4, 1799 – March 4, 1805
New Jersey Assembly, 1814–1815

Further Information

Get more info on 'Jonathan Dayton'.

External Link Exchanges

Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:

<a href="http://jonathan_dayton.totallyexplained.com">Jonathan Dayton Totally Explained</a>

Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned.