John Israel Yellott (May 11, 1840 – November 7, 1919) was an American politician from Maryland. He served as a member of 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, ...

, representing

Baltimore County 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 ...

in 1878.

Early life

John Israel Yellott was born on May 11, 1840, in

to Sarah J. (née Maulsby) and John Yellott. His grandfather was

Israel D. Maulsby Israel David Maulsby (1781 – 1839) was an American politician from Maryland. He served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing Harford County, Maryland, Harford County in 1813, from 1818 to 1820 and from 1836 to 1838. Ear ...

. His ancestor was Jeremiah Yellott, a designer and builder of clipper ships in Baltimore. His cousin was

Richard Dallam Richard Dallam (May 11, 1865 – April 11, 1939) was an American politician from Maryland. He served as Secretary of State of Maryland from 1896 to 1899. Early life Richard Dallam was born on May 11, 1865, in Bel Air, Maryland, to Mary C. (né ...

. He studied law with his uncle William P. Maulsby of Frederick and finished his studies under John E. Smith of

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

. He was admitted to the bar before turning 20.

Career

Yellott volunteered for the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

at the age of 21. He was promoted from private to captain to major. He was severely wounded at the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...

and was rendered unfit for active service. He took command of a post in Frederick in 1864. He had this post during the Battle of Monocacy. He retired from service in October 1864. Yellott was nominated for

state's attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a loc ...

by the Republican while in the Army, but he declined. After he retired from the military, he practiced law in Frederick and

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He also engaged at the military court in Martinsburg, West Virginia, and had offices in

Jefferson Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foo ...

and

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

counties. His practice was associated with Major Andrews. In 1868, he moved back to Maryland and opened an office in Towson. Yellott worked as counsel for the county commissioners of Baltimore County. He was appointed deputy state's attorney in 1870. He worked as counsel for the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the first common carrier railroad and the oldest railroad in the United States, with its first section opening in 1830. Merchants from Baltimore, which had benefited to some extent from the construction of ...

for 25 years. Yellott was a representative of West Virginia at the Peace Convention in Philadelphia in 1866. Yellott was 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 ...

. He served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing Baltimore County in 1878. He was appointed as state's attorney to replace N. Charles Burke, but he resigned the role after a few months. Yellott was an associate editor and publisher of a newspaper in eastern West Virginia. In 1870 and 1871, Yellott was the editor of the ''Baltimore County Democrat''. In 1872 and 1873, Yellott joined William S. Keech and worked as an editor and publisher of the ''Baltimore County Herald''. Yellott was a speaker at the unveiling of the Civil War monument at Druid Hill Park.

Personal life

Yellott married Mary V. Frail of Frederick on June 2, 1868. They had six children, Mrs. T. Scott Offutt, Mrs. Frank H. Worthington, Mrs. Carl Gaines, Osborne I. and John I. His son John I. was a reverend. His brother George W. Yellott was a county commissioner. Yellott was a member of the Episcopal Church. He was also a

Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

. Yellott died on November 7, 1919, at his home at 15 West Pennsylvania Avenue in Towson. He was buried at Prospect Hill Cemetery in Towson.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yellott, John I. 1840 births 1919 deaths Politicians from Baltimore People from Baltimore County, Maryland People from Berkeley County, West Virginia People from Jefferson County, West Virginia Union Army officers People of Maryland in the American Civil War Democratic Party members of the Maryland House of Delegates State's attorneys in Maryland Maryland lawyers West Virginia lawyers American Freemasons American newspaper editors American newspaper publishers (people) 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers 19th-century American legislators 19th-century Maryland politicians