Edmund Burke (January 23, 1809 – January 25, 1882) was an American lawyer, newspaper editor and politician. He served as the

United States Commissioner of Patents The Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property, or USC(IP), is a senior official in the United States Department of Commerce and the principal advisor to the United States Secretary of Commerce on the intellectual property matters. In t ...

and as a

U.S. 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 c ...

from

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

in the 1840s.

Early life and career

Born in

Westminster, Vermont Westminster is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,016 at the 2020 census. It is also the first capital of the Republic of Vermont. It borders the state of New Hampshire. History Westminster is Vermont's olde ...

, Burke was the son of Elijah and Grace (Jeffers) Burke. He attended the public schools and studied law with Henry Adams Bellows, future Chief Justice of the

New Hampshire Supreme Court The New Hampshire Supreme Court is the supreme court of the U. S. state of New Hampshire and sole appellate court of the state. The Supreme Court is seated in the state capital, Concord. The Court is composed of a Chief Justice and four Associate ...

. Burke 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 1826. He began practicing law in

Colebrook, New Hampshire Colebrook is a town in Coös County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,084 at the time of the 2020 census, down from 2,301 at the 2010 census.United States Census BureauAmerican FactFinder 2010 Census figures. Retrieved March 23, ...

before moving to

Claremont, New Hampshire Claremont is the only city in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 12,949 at the 2020 census. History Pre-colonial native populations Before colonial settlement, the Upper Connecticut River Valley was home to the Pe ...

in 1833. He assumed editorial management of the ''New Hampshire Argus'', and when he moved to

Newport, New Hampshire Newport is a town in and the county seat of Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. It is west-northwest of Concord, the state capital. The population of Newport was 6,299 at the 2020 census. A covered bridge is in the northwest. The ar ...

in 1834, he united the ''Argus'' with the ''New Hampshire Spectator'' of Newport. The newly created ''Argus and Spectator'' was a political newspaper. He was commissioned as an adjutant in the New Hampshire State militia in 1837 and as brigade inspector in 1838.

Political career

Elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the Twenty-sixth, Twenty-seventh and

Twenty-eighth Congress The 28th 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, 1843 ...

es, Burke served as United States Representative for the state of New Hampshire from March 4, 1839 to March 3, 1845. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1844. He was appointed Commissioner of Patents by

President Polk James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. He previously was the 13th speaker of the House of Representatives (1835–1839) and ninth governor of Tennessee (183 ...

and served from May 5, 1846 to September 3, 1850. While serving in that office, he wrote a series of articles about the tariff under the signature ''Bundelcund''. The articles were written for ''The Washington Union'' and circulated as a pamphlet. After leaving the patent office, he resumed the practice of law in Newport, New Hampshire. He served as delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1844 and 1852. In 1867, he served as delegate to the Democratic State convention and served as presiding officer. He was a member of the State board of agriculture in 1871, and was a member of the

Vermont Historical Society The Vermont Historical Society (VHS) was founded in 1838 to preserve and record the cultural history of the US state of Vermont. Headquartered in the old Spaulding School Building in Barre, the Vermont History Center is home to the Vermont His ...

Death

Burke died in Newport, Sullivan County, New Hampshire on January 25, 1882 (age 73 years, 2 days). He is interred at Maple Grove Cemetery in Newport, New Hampshire.

Personal life

Burke married Ann Matson on December 1, 1840. His wife was the granddaughter of

Aaron Matson Aaron Matson (1770 – July 18, 1855) was a United States representative from New Hampshire. He was born in Plymouth, Massachusetts. He moved to Cheshire County, New Hampshire, where he was the county judge of probate. Matson was a member of th ...

, US Representative from New Hampshire. They had one daughter, Frances Matson Burke. Ann died at the age of twenty-eight. Burke later married Mary Elizabeth Whitney.

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Edmund 1809 births 1882 deaths People from Westminster (town), Vermont Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire United States Commissioners of Patents American newspaper editors American militia officers People from Newport, New Hampshire People from Colebrook, New Hampshire People from Claremont, New Hampshire 19th-century American journalists American male journalists 19th-century American male writers 19th-century American politicians