James Grubb was a delegate to the convention that wrote the first constitution for the U.S. state of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

in 1802. He was a Democratic-Republican, who opposed allowing slavery in the new state.

Biography

James Grubb was born in 1771 at

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Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Lancaster County (; Pennsylvania Dutch: Lengeschder Kaundi), sometimes nicknamed the Garden Spot of America or Pennsylvania Dutch Country, is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the south central part of Pennsylvania. ...

. His great grandfather had emigrated from England about a century before, and his father was a veteran of the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

. Grubb settled in Ross County in the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolutionary War. Established in 1 ...

, and was named a Justice of the Peace in 1799 by Governor

Arthur St. Clair Arthur St. Clair ( – August 31, 1818) was a Scottish-American soldier and politician. Born in Thurso, Scotland, he served in the British Army during the French and Indian War before settling in Pennsylvania, where he held local office. During ...

. He was prominent among those

Democratic-Republicans The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early ...

who pushed for statehood and for the removal of St. Clair. In 1802, elections were held in each county of the territory that would become

for delegates to a constitutional convention to write a constitution for the new state, which would be submitted to the US Congress. Grubb ran for a seat on this commission, and submitted a letter to the Chillicothe newspaper on September 6, 1802, which stated: "As to the introduction of slavery, I must confess that I am not so great a Federalist or Aristocrat as to wish its admission. Such a pernicious scheme ought to be guarded against in a particular manner, as I conceive it bad policy and the principle cannot be advocated by any person of humane or republican sentiments." Grubb won election to the

convention Convention may refer to: * Convention (norm), a custom or tradition, a standard of presentation or conduct ** Treaty, an agreement in international law * Convention (meeting), meeting of a (usually large) group of individuals and/or companies in a ...

, which met from November 1 to 29, 1802. At the convention he voted against allowing slavery, but opposed equal civil rights for black men. Grubb ran for the Ohio House of Representatives in January and October 1803, but lost both times. At the time he died, he lived in the village of Westfall, which was then in Ross County, but is now in

Wayne Township, Pickaway County, Ohio Wayne Township is one of the fifteen townships of Pickaway County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 565 people in the township. Geography Located in the southern part of the county, it borders the following townships: * Jackson Townshi ...

. Grubb died at Chillicothe on January 30, 1806, after a short illness. He never married.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grubb, James Ohio Constitutional Convention (1802) Politicians from Chillicothe, Ohio 1771 births 1806 deaths People from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Ohio Democratic-Republicans