Elijah Hamlin (March 29, 1800 – July 16, 1872) was an American lawyer, businessman, politician and historian. He served in both houses of the Maine state legislature and as mayor of Bangor. Elijah Livermore Hamlin was born in

Livermore, Maine Livermore is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. Formerly in Oxford County, Maine. The population was 2,127 at the 2020 United States Census. It is included in both the Lewiston- Auburn, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area and t ...

on July 29, 1800, and was the older brother of future

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...

Hannibal Hamlin Hannibal Hamlin (August 27, 1809 – July 4, 1891) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 15th vice president of the United States from 1861 to 1865, during President Abraham Lincoln's first term. He was the first Republican ...

. He graduated from

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

, studied law, and was admitted to the bar. After practicing in

Waterford, Maine Waterford is a New England town, town in Oxford County, Maine, Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,570 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is a recreation area noted for historic architecture and scenic beauty. ...

, Hamlin moved to

Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat of Penobscot County. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's 3rd-largest settlement, behind Portland (68,408) and Lewiston (37,121). Modern Bangor ...

. He served in the

Maine House of Representatives The Maine House of Representatives is the lower house of the Maine Legislature. The House consists of 151 voting members and three nonvoting members. The voting members represent an equal number of districts across the state and are elected via p ...

in 1830–1832 and 1847–1848, and in the

Maine State Senate The Maine Senate is the upper house of the Maine Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maine. The Senate currently consists of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, though the Maine Constitution ...

in 1837 and 1858–1859. He ran unsuccessfully for

Governor of Maine The governor of Maine is the head of government of the U.S. state of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive. The current governor of Maine is Ja ...

in 1848 and

1849 Events January–March * January 1 – France begins issue of the Ceres series, the nation's first postage stamps. * January 5 – Hungarian Revolution of 1848: The Austrian army, led by Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz, enters in th ...

as a Whig. From 1851 to 1853 he served as mayor of Bangor. Hamlin died in Bangor on July 16, 1872, and was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery in Bangor.

References

1800 births 1872 deaths Maine lawyers People from Livermore, Maine Mayors of Bangor, Maine Maine Whigs 19th-century American politicians Brown University alumni Maine state senators Members of the Maine House of Representatives People from Waterford, Maine 19th-century American lawyers {{Maine-politician-stub