Anson Peaslee Morrill (June 10, 1803 – July 4, 1887) was an American politician who served as the
24th governor of Maine from 1855 to 1856 and later as the U.S. representative from
Maine's 4th congressional district
Maine's 4th congressional district was a congressional district in Maine. It was created in 1821 after Maine achieved statehood in 1820 due to the result of the ratification of the Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a federal legi ...
from 1861 to 1863.
Biography
Morrill was born in 1803 in
Belgrade (in modern-day
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...
, then a part of
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
). In his early years, Morrill served as the Postmaster of Dearborn and ran a general store. He was elected to the
Maine House of Representatives in 1833 from Belgrade. He served as
Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to:
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Sheriff in 1839, and was subsequently elected the State House from
Madison Madison may refer to:
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in 1844. In 1850, Morrill was appointed State Land Agent, and served until 1854.
Though Morrill was a Democrat, he emerged as the anti-
Maine Law
The Maine Law (or "Maine Liquor Law"), passed on June 2, 1851 in Maine, was the first statutory implementation of the developing temperance movement in the United States.
History
Temperance activist Neal Dow helped craft the Maine liquor law w ...
candidate for Governor in 1853. In that year's gubernatorial election, Morrill placed third, winning 13% of the vote to Democrat Albert Pillsbury's 44% and incumbent Whig Governor
William Crosby’s 32%. No candidate received a majority of the vote, which threw the election to the state legislature. Though the governing coalition of Whigs, Free Soilers, and anti-Maine Law Democrats originally agreed to elect Morrill as Governor, the Whigs backed out—and instead re-elected Crosby as Governor.
Morrill again in 1854, this time as the
Know Nothing nominee, and won 49% of the vote to Albion Parris's 31% and Isaac Reed's 15%. The election was once again thrown to the legislature, which elected Morrill. He ran for re-election in 1855 as the nominee of the newly formed
Republican Party, but though he won 47% of the vote to Democrat Samuel Wells's 44%, the legislature elected Wells over Morrill.
In 1860, Morrill was elected to the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
from
Maine's 4th congressional district
Maine's 4th congressional district was a congressional district in Maine. It was created in 1821 after Maine achieved statehood in 1820 due to the result of the ratification of the Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a federal legi ...
. Though
James G. Blaine had originally planned on running for the seat, he deferred to Morrill. In 1862, Morrill opted against seeking re-election to allow Blaine to run. After leaving Congress, he served as President of the
Maine Central Railroad
The Maine Central Railroad Company was a U. S. Class I railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. By 1884, Maine Central was the longest railroad in New England. Maine Central had expanded to ...
.
He served one final term as a member of the Maine House from 1881 to 1882. In 1882, Morrill urged Blaine, his old friend, to
run for Congress, but Blaine declined.
Governor Morrill died in 1887 in
Augusta, Maine and is buried at the Forest Grove Cemetery in Augusta.
References
Citations
Sources
*
External links
1803 births
1887 deaths
19th-century American railroad executives
Republican Party governors of Maine
Maine sheriffs
Republican Party members of the Maine House of Representatives
People of Maine in the American Civil War
People from Belgrade, Maine
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Maine
19th-century American politicians
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