Jesse Hunt (July 3, 1793 – December 8, 1872) was

Mayor of Baltimore The mayor of Baltimore is the head of the executive branch of the government of the City of Baltimore, Maryland. The Mayor has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills, ordinances, or resolutions passed by the ...

from November 1832 to August 11, 1835. He resigned office following a

banking crisis A bank run or run on the bank occurs when many clients withdraw their money from a bank, because they believe the bank may cease to function in the near future. In other words, it is when, in a fractional-reserve banking system (where banks no ...

in which, as a director of the failed bank, he was personally implicated.

Early life

Jesse Hunt was born on July 3, 1793, in Green Spring Valley,

Baltimore County, Maryland Baltimore County ( , locally: or ) is the third-most populous county in the U.S. state of Maryland and is part of the Baltimore metropolitan area. Baltimore County (which partially surrounds, though does not include, the independent City of ...

. He was a descendant of a pioneer family of

Calvert County Calvert County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,783. Its county seat is Prince Frederick. The county's name is derived from the family name of the Barons of Baltimore, the proprietors of t ...

. His father moved from Calvert County to Green Spring Valley in 1760. In 1808, he served as an apprentice at the house of William and Richard Hall, a

saddlery Tack is equipment or accessories equipped on horses and other equines in the course of their use as domesticated animals. This equipment includes such items as saddles, stirrups, bridles, halters, reins, bits, and harnesses. Equipping a horse i ...

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Career

Hunt enlisted in the volunteer army and helped raise the company

Washington Blues The Washington Blues were a company of Maryland Volunteers which saw action during the Battle of Bladensburg and the Battle of North Point, during the War of 1812. History When war broke out between the United States and Great Britain, George H ...

, a division attached to the 5th Maryland Regiment and was at the

Battle of North Point The Battle of North Point was fought on September 12, 1814, between General John Stricker's Maryland Militia and a British force led by Major General Robert Ross. Although the Americans retreated, they were able to do so in good order having inf ...

in 1814 during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. He later became a lieutenant and resigned his commission in 1822. In 1815, Hunt started to work in the saddlery and harness-making business. He was elected to the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the legislature of the State of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House on State Circle in Annapolis, ...

in 1829, 1830 and 1831. In 1832, he was nominated for mayor and was elected under the Democratic ticket, defeating

Jacob Small Jacob Small (died 1851) was an American politician who served as the sixth mayor of Baltimore from 1826 to 1831, when he resigned from office. He designed the Ellicott City Station of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O), finished in 1831. It is ...

. He was re-elected in 1834. In 1834, the Bank of Maryland, of which Hunt was a director, experienced a

liquidity crisis In financial economics, a liquidity crisis is an acute shortage of ''liquidity''. Liquidity may refer to market liquidity (the ease with which an asset can be converted into a liquid medium, e.g. cash), funding liquidity (the ease with which borrowe ...

and collapsed. Months passed and creditors grew tired of waiting in vain for a settlement, and violence soon followed. On August 6, 1835, a mob gathered and broke the windows of the house of

Reverdy Johnson Reverdy Johnson (May 21, 1796February 10, 1876) was a statesman and jurist from Maryland. He gained fame as a defense attorney, defending notables such as Sandford of the Dred Scott case, Maj. Gen. Fitz John Porter at his court-martial, and Mary S ...

one of the bank's directors. Jesse attempted to protect his colleague's home, but was unable to prevent the destruction of that and many other bank directors' homes, including - eventually - his own. Hunt, having lost control of the city, resigned five days later, on August 11, 1835. After resigning, Hunt was elected as City Register and served in that position for ten years. He became the first president of Eutaw Savings Bank and served in that position until 1871.

Personal life

Hunt married Margaret Yundt and she died in 1860. He had seven children. He died on December 8, 1872 at his home in Baltimore. He was buried at

Green Mount Cemetery Green Mount Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Established on March 15, 1838, and dedicated on July 13, 1839, it is noted for the large number of historical figures interred in its grounds as well as many ...

in Baltimore.

Notes

External links

www.msa.md.gov
Retrieved January 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunt, Jesse 1793 births 1872 deaths Bank riot Finance fraud Members of the Maryland House of Delegates Mayors of Baltimore People from Maryland in the War of 1812 Burials at Green Mount Cemetery

Early life

Career

Personal life

See also

Notes

External links