Charles Townsend was a Republican politician in the Ohio House of Representatives,

Ohio Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of the se ...

, and was Ohio Secretary of State from 1881 to 1883.

Biography

Charles Townsend was born December 22, 1834, in Harrisville, Belmont County, Ohio, to Samuel H. Townsend and Rebecca Morrison, and removed to

Athens County Athens County is a County (United States), county in southeastern Ohio. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 62,431. Its county seat is Athens, Ohio, Athens. The county was formed in 1805 from Washington County, ...

in childhood. Reed 1897 : 121-122 He attended common schools, and taught school for expenses as he attended

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

, where he graduated in 1861. He founded Decamp Institute in

Meigs County, Ohio Meigs County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,210. Its county seat is Pomeroy. The county is named for Return J. Meigs Jr., the fourth Governor of Ohio. Geography According to th ...

, and was in charge of that school when the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

began. Smith 1898 : 434 In July, 1861, he enlisted in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

, and in August was made a captain in the Thirtieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. On January 27, 1864, he was made Major of the regiment. After the War he graduated from Cincinnati Law School in 1866. Townsend was elected Prosecuting Attorney of

Athens County, Ohio Athens County is a county in southeastern Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 62,431. Its county seat is Athens. The county was formed in 1805 from Washington County. Because the original state university (Ohio University) was fo ...

, three times. In 1877 he was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives for the 64th General Assembly, and re-elected in 1879 for the 65th. He resigned when he was elected Ohio Secretary of State in 1880, and ran again in 1882, but was defeated. He served as State Commander of the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

, and was elected to the Ohio Senate in 1887 for the 9th District in the 68th General Assembly. Ohio 1917 : 246 Townsend married Margaret Jane Allen in October 1859, and had three children, Helen, Charles and Mary. He was a

Mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cut ...

Notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Townsend, Charles (Ohio Politician) Secretaries of State of Ohio People from Belmont County, Ohio People from Athens County, Ohio Ohio lawyers 1834 births Republican Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives Republican Party Ohio state senators Union Army officers People of Ohio in the American Civil War County district attorneys in Ohio University of Cincinnati College of Law alumni Ohio University alumni 1900 deaths 19th-century American legislators 19th-century American lawyers Grand Army of the Republic officials