John McKeon (March 29, 1808,

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

– November 22, 1883, New York City) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. From 1835 to 1837, and 1841 to 1843, he served two non-consecutive terms in 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 ...

as Jacksonian.

Life

He was the son of Capt. James McKeon who fought in 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 graduated from the law department of Columbia College in 1828, was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

, and commenced practice in New York City.

Political career

McKeon was a representative in the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

from 1832 to 1834.

Congress

He was elected as a Jacksonian to the

24th United States Congress The 24th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1835 ...

, serving from March 4, 1835, to March 3, 1837, but was defeated for re-election. He was elected as 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 ...

to the

27th United States Congress The 27th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. between March 4, 1 ...

, serving from March 4, 1841, to March 3, 1843, but was again defeated for re-election.

Later career

In February 1846, he was appointed

New York County District Attorney The New York County District Attorney, also known as the Manhattan District Attorney, is the elected district attorney for New York County (Manhattan), New York (state), New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New ...

and, when the office became elective under the State Constitution of 1846, was elected in May 1847 to succeed himself. He remained in office until the end of 1850 when his term expired. In this office, he secured the conviction of

Madame Restell Ann Trow Lohman (May 6, 1812 – April 1, 1878), better known as Madame Restell, was a British-born American abortion provider who practiced in New York City. Early life Ann Trow was born in Painswick, Gloucestershire, England in 1812 to John a ...

. He was appointed by President

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unity ...

United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York is the chief federal law enforcement officer in eight New York counties: New York (Manhattan), Bronx, Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess and Sullivan. Establishe ...

, and served from July 10, 1854, to January 7, 1858. While holding this office, he prosecuted a number of important cases. Among them were the attempt to enlist men to serve in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

, and the seizure of the filibustering ship "Northern Light." He was again New York County D.A. from 1882 until his death in office.

Death

He died at his residence at 44, West 37th Street, and was buried in a family vault under the old St. Patrick's Cathedral on

Mott Street Mott Street () is a narrow but busy thoroughfare that runs in a north–south direction in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is regarded as Chinatown's unofficial " Main Street". Mott Street runs from Bleecker Street in the north to C ...

in New York City.

References

External links

''The New York Civil List''
compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 211ff and 377; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
''SKETCH OF THE CANDIDATES''
in NYT on October 19, 1881
''JOHN M'KEON'S WORK DONE''
in NYT on November 23, 1883 Attribution * {{DEFAULTSORT:McKeon, John 1808 births 1883 deaths Columbia College (New York) alumni New York County District Attorneys Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly United States Attorneys for the Southern District of New York Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers