James Tracy Hale (October 14, 1810 – April 6, 1865) was a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the

U.S. House of Representatives 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

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Biography

James T. Hale was born October 14, 1810, in

Towanda, Pennsylvania Towanda is a borough and the county seat of Bradford County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania and is located northwest of Wilkes-Barre, on the Susquehanna River. The name means "burial ground" in the Algon ...

, the son of Reuben & Wealthy Ann (Tracy) Hale. He studied law partly with his brother-in-law, General William Patton (1799-1877), and partly with his uncle, Elias White Hale (1775-1832). He was admitted to the bar in 1832 in

Lewistown, Pennsylvania Lewistown is a borough in and the county seat of Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the principal city of the '' Lewistown, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area'', which encompasses all of Mifflin County. It lies along the Juniata Ri ...

, and where he practiced for several years. He married Jane Walker Huston (1815-1883), daughter of Justice Charles Huston of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and Mary Winter. Afterward Mr. Hale and his bride moved to

Bellefonte, Pennsylvania Bellefonte is a borough in, and the county seat of, Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is approximately twelve miles northeast of State College and is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The boro ...

, where his father-in-law resided. After practicing there for a short time in 1851 he was appointed president judge of the twentieth judicial district and served in that office until 1858.Obituary of James T. Hale, ''Bradford Reporter'', Towanda, Pennsylvania, Thursday, April 20, 1865, p.3 In 1858 Hale was elected as a Republican to the Thirty-sixth and in 1860 elected to Thirty-seventh Congresses and in 1862 as an Independent Republican to the Thirty-eighth Congress. During his last term he served as chairman of the

United States House Committee on Claims The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, ad ...

. He was conservative in his political views and urged Congress to pass compromise resolutions soon after the outbreak of the Civil War. He was a Christian, and a member of the Episcopal Church. Children of James T. Hale and Jane Walker Huston: Charles H. Hale (1837–1872), James Tracy Hale (1848–1877) & George N. Hale (1850–1885). James T. Hale, Sr. died after a short bout of

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

on April 6, 1865, in

, and was there buried at Union Cemetery. He was the first cousin of Secretary of the Navy,

Gideon Welles Gideon Welles (July 1, 1802 – February 11, 1878), nicknamed "Father Neptune", was the United States Secretary of the Navy from 1861 to 1869, a cabinet post he was awarded after supporting Abraham Lincoln in the 1860 election. Although opposed ...

References

Sources

The Political Graveyard

External links

* Pennsylvania state court judges Pennsylvania lawyers 1810 births 1865 deaths People from Towanda, Pennsylvania Independent Republican members of the United States House of Representatives Burials in Pennsylvania Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Independents 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers {{Pennsylvania-state-judge-stub