Daniel Buck (November 9, 1753 – August 16, 1816) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a

United States representative 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

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

Biography

Buck was born in

Hebron, Connecticut Hebron is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 9,098 at the 2020 census. Hebron was incorporated May 26, 1708. In 2010, Hebron was rated #6 in Top Towns in Connecticut with population between 6,500 and 10,000, ...

, the son of Thomas and Jane Buck. He served as a soldier in the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

and rose to the rank of sergeant as a member of Captain David Wheeler's Company in the Massachusetts militia regiment commanded by Benjamin Simonds. He was wounded and lost an arm at the

Battle of Bennington The Battle of Bennington was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, part of the Saratoga campaign, that took place on August 16, 1777, on a farm owned by John Green in Walloomsac, New York, about from its namesake, Bennington, Vermont. A r ...

in 1777, and received a pension from the state of Massachusetts. He studied law with Sylvester Gilbert and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1783. He practiced law in

Thetford, Vermont Thetford is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States in the Connecticut River Valley. The population was 2,775 at the 2020 census. Villages within the town include East Thetford, North Thetford, Thetford Hill, Thetford Center, Rices Mill ...

, and served as

state's attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a loc ...

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

from 1783 to 1785 and Orange County's

clerk of the court A court clerk (British English: clerk to the court or clerk of the court ; American English: clerk of the court or clerk of court ) is an officer of the court whose responsibilities include maintaining records of a court, administer oaths to witn ...

in 1783 and 1784. He was assistant secretary of the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives ar ...

in 1784, and secretary ''pro tempore'' of Vermont's Governor's Council in 1785. Buck moved to

Norwich, Vermont Norwich is a town in Windsor County, in the U.S. state of Vermont. The population was 3,612 at the 2020 census. Home to some of the state of Vermont's wealthiest residents, the municipality is a commuter town for nearby Hanover, New Hampshir ...

in 1785. The town's first attorney, he also supported himself by carrying out the duties of town highway surveyor and pound keeper. He was a delegate to the 1791 convention which ratified the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...

and made possible Vermont's admission to the Union as the 14th state. In 1792 he served on the state Council of Censors, which met periodically to review acts of the Vermont House and ensure their constitutionality. He was a member of the

in 1793 and 1794, and served as

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

. He served as

Vermont Attorney General The Vermont Attorney General is a statewide elected executive official in the U.S. state of Vermont who is elected every two years. It was created by an act of the Vermont General Assembly in 1790, repealed in 1797, and revived in 1904. The office ...

from 1793 to 1795. He was elected as a

Federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of de ...

to the Fourth Congress, serving from March 4, 1795, to March 3, 1797. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1796. In 1799 Buck received the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

. Buck was

for Windsor County in 1802 and 1803. In 1805 Buck moved to

Chelsea, Vermont Chelsea is a town in and the shire town (county seat) of Orange County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,233 at the 2020 census. Geography Chelsea is located in a river valley in central Vermont. The First Branch of the White Rive ...

, where he practiced law and again served as a member of the Vermont House of Representatives in 1806 and 1807. Among the students who studied law with Buck was

William A. Palmer William Adams Palmer (September 12, 1781December 3, 1860) was an American lawyer and politician. A prominent of the Anti-Masonic Party in the 1830s, he was most notable for his service as a US Senator from Vermont (1818–1825) and the 13th gover ...

. While living in Chelsea Buck was imprisoned for debt. He was given a parole called "freedom of the prison", which enabled him to work and raise money to pay off his creditors.

Death

Buck died in Chelsea on August 16, 1816, and was interred at the Old Chelsea Cemetery in Chelsea.

Family

In 1786 Buck married Content Ashley of Norwich. They were the parents of eleven children, seven of whom lived to adulthood. Daniel Buck's son,

Daniel Azro Ashley Buck Daniel Azro Ashley Buck (April 19, 1789December 24, 1841) was an American lawyer and politician in the U.S. state of Vermont. He served as a U.S. Representative from Vermont and as Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives. Early life Buc ...

, was also a U.S. Representative from Vermont, and served in the

Twentieth Congress The 20th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1827, ...

(March 4, 1827 to March 3, 1829).

References

External links

*
The Political Graveyard

govtrack.us

The State of Vermont: Office of the Attorney General

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buck, Daniel 1753 births 1816 deaths People from Hebron, Connecticut People from Chelsea, Vermont Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Speakers of the Vermont House of Representatives Vermont lawyers State's attorneys in Vermont Vermont Attorneys General Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont People of colonial Connecticut Continental Army soldiers People of Connecticut in the American Revolution American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law 19th-century American lawyers