John Parker Hale (March 31, 1806November 19, 1873) was an American politician and lawyer from

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. He served in the

United States 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from 1843 to 1845 and in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

from 1847 to 1853 and again from 1855 to 1865. He began his Congressional career 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 ...

, but helped establish the anti-slavery

Free Soil Party The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery into ...

and eventually joined the Republican Party. Born in

Rochester, New Hampshire Rochester is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 32,492 at the 2020 census. In addition to the downtown area, the city contains the villages of East Rochester, New Hampshire, East Rochester, Gonic, New Ha ...

, Hale established a legal practice in

Dover, New Hampshire Dover is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 32,741 at the 2020 census, making it the largest city in the New Hampshire Seacoast region and the fifth largest municipality in the state. It is the county se ...

after graduating from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...

. Hale won election to the

New Hampshire House of Representatives The New Hampshire House of Representatives is the lower house in the New Hampshire General Court, the bicameral legislature of the state of New Hampshire. The House of Representatives consists of 400 members coming from 204 legislative district ...

in 1832 and served as the

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

for New Hampshire under President

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

and President

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (Uni ...

. He won election to the United States House of Representatives in 1842 but was denied the party's nomination in 1844 due to his opposition to the

annexation of Texas The Texas annexation was the 1845 annexation of the Republic of Texas into the United States. Texas was admitted to the Union as the 28th state on December 29, 1845. The Republic of Texas declared independence from the Republic of Mexico ...

. After losing his seat, he continued to campaign against

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

and won election to the Senate in 1846 as an Independent Democrat. In the Senate, he strongly opposed the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

and continued to speak against slavery. Hale helped establish the anti-slavery Free Soil Party and was a candidate for the party's presidential nomination in 1848, but the 1848 Free Soil Convention instead nominated former President Van Buren. He won the party's presidential nomination in

1852 Events January–March * January 14 – President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaims a new constitution for the French Second Republic. * January 15 – Nine men representing various Jewish charitable organizations come tog ...

, receiving 4.9% of the popular vote in the general election. After the passage of the

Kansas–Nebraska Act The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 () was a territorial organic act that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. It was drafted by Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglas, passed by the 33rd United States Congress, and signed into law by ...

, Hale joined the nascent Republican Party and returned to the Senate. He served until 1865, at which point he accepted an appointment from President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

to serve as the Minister to Spain. He held that post until he was recalled in April 1869, at which point he retired from public office.

Early years

Hale was born in

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

Strafford County, New Hampshire Strafford County is a county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 census, the population was 130,889. Its county seat is Dover. Strafford County was one of the five original counties identified for New Hampshire in 1769. It was n ...

, the son of John Parker Hale and Lydia Clarkson O'Brien. He attended

Phillips Exeter Academy (not for oneself) la, Finis Origine Pendet (The End Depends Upon the Beginning) gr, Χάριτι Θεοῦ (By the Grace of God) , location = 20 Main Street , city = Exeter, New Hampshire , zipcode ...

and graduated in 1827 from

, where he was a classmate of

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 ...

and a prominent member of the Athenian Society, a literary club. He began his law studies in Rochester with Jeremiah H. Woodman, and continued them with Daniel M. Christie in

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

. He passed the

bar examination A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associa ...

in 1830 and practiced law in Dover. He married Lucy Lambert, the daughter of William Thomas Lambert and Abigail Ricker.

Start of political career

In March 1832, Hale was elected to the

as a

. In 1834, President

appointed him as

U.S. District Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

for New Hampshire. This appointment was renewed by President

in 1838, but in 1841 Hale was removed on party grounds by President

John Tyler John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president dire ...

, a Whig. Hale was elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-eighth

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

, serving from March 4, 1843, to March 3, 1845. There he spoke out against the

gag rule A gag rule is a rule that limits or forbids the raising, consideration, or discussion of a particular topic, often but not always by members of a legislative or decision-making body. A famous example of gag rules is the series of rules concernin ...

that had been approved by Congress on December 12, 1838. This rule had been created by another New Hampshire representative,

Charles G. Atherton Charles Gordon Atherton (July 4, 1804November 15, 1853) was an American politician and lawyer from New Hampshire. He was elected to the United States House of Representatives from 1837 to 1843. He was elected to the United States Senate from 184 ...

and was intended to put a stop to anti-slavery petitions.

Anti-slavery transition

Hale supported the Democratic candidates

James K. Polk James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. He previously was the 13th speaker of the House of Representatives (1835–1839) and ninth governor of Tennessee (183 ...

and

George M. Dallas George Mifflin Dallas (July 10, 1792 – December 31, 1864) was an American politician and diplomat who served as mayor of Philadelphia from 1828 to 1829, the 11th vice president of the United States from 1845 to 1849, and U.S. Minister to the ...

in the 1844 presidential election, and was renominated for his Congressional seat without opposition. Before the Congressional election, Texas annexation was adopted by the Democratic Party as part of its platform. In December 1844 the

New Hampshire Legislature The General Court of New Hampshire is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The lower house is the New Hampshire House of Representatives with 400 members. The upper house is the New Hampshire Senate with 24 memb ...

passed resolutions instructing its senators and Congressmen to favor Texas annexation. Instead, Hale made a public statement opposing annexation on anti-slavery grounds. The Democratic state convention was then reassembled in

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

under Pierce's leadership for the purpose of stripping Hale of his Congressional nomination. The reassembled convention branded him a traitor to the party, and in February 1845 his name was stricken from the Democratic ticket. In the subsequent election, Hale ran as an independent. Hale, the replacement Democratic candidate, and the Whig candidate failed to obtain a majority, so the district was unrepresented.

Anti-slavery governing coalition

In the face of an apparently invincible Democratic majority, Hale set out to win New Hampshire over to the anti-slavery cause. He addressed meetings in every town and village in the state, carrying on a remarkable campaign known as the "Hale Storm of 1845," which included a June 5, 1845 debate between Pierce and Hale at the North Church in Concord. In 1846, Hale was able to use New Hampshire's unusual electoral rules to his advantage. Under the state constitution, candidates for

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

and

State Senate A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...

required a majority of the vote to win; if no candidate won a majority, the General Court would pick among the top two candidates. The strong performance of the anti-slavery

resulted in no majority winner in the 1846 gubernatorial election or in seven out of twelve State Senate seats. Accordingly, Hale's coalition of Whigs, Liberty Party members and Independent Democrats were able to join together to win control of state government after the election. The coalition selected seven Whig candidates to fill the State Senate vacancies, ensuring coalition control of the chamber. It then elected Whig

Anthony Colby Anthony Colby (November 13, 1792July 20, 1873) was an American businessman and politician from New London, New Hampshire. He owned and operated a grist mill and a stage line, and served as the 20th governor of New Hampshire from 1846 to 1847. Bi ...

as Governor (despite him winning just 32% of the vote to Democrat

Jared W. Williams Jared Warner Williams (December 22, 1796September 29, 1864) was an American lawyer and politician from Lancaster, New Hampshire, who was a U.S. representative, the 21st governor of New Hampshire 1847 to 1849 and a United States senator. Biogra ...

's 48%), Liberty Party member Joseph Cilley to a vacancy in the U.S. Senate, and Hale as Speaker of the State House. When Cilley's term expired in 1847, Hale was elected as his successor.

United States Senator

Hale was elected June 9, 1846, as an

Independent Democratic In U.S. politics, an independent Democrat is an individual who loosely identifies with the ideals of the Democratic Party but chooses not to be a formal member of the party (chooses to be an independent) or is denied the Democratic nomination ...

Candidate to the

and served from March 4, 1847, to March 3, 1853, later becoming a

Free Soil The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery into ...

er. He was among the strongest opponents of the

in the Senate and is considered "the first U.S. Senator with an openly anti-slavery (or

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

) platform". He was the only Senator to vote against the resolution tendering the thanks of Congress to

Winfield Scott Winfield Scott (June 13, 1786May 29, 1866) was an American military commander and political candidate. He served as a general in the United States Army from 1814 to 1861, taking part in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, the early s ...

and

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military leader who served as the 12th president of the United States from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States Army, rising to th ...

for their victories in the

. In 1849 he was joined in the Senate by anti-slavery advocates

Salmon P. Chase Salmon Portland Chase (January 13, 1808May 7, 1873) was an American politician and jurist who served as the sixth chief justice of the United States. He also served as the 23rd governor of Ohio, represented Ohio in the United States Senate, a ...

and

William H. Seward William Henry Seward (May 16, 1801 – October 10, 1872) was an American politician who served as United States Secretary of State from 1861 to 1869, and earlier served as governor of New York and as a United States Senate, United States Senat ...

, and in 1851 he was joined by

Charles Sumner Charles Sumner (January 6, 1811March 11, 1874) was an American statesman and United States Senator from Massachusetts. As an academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the anti-slavery forces in the state and a leader of th ...

. Hale also opposed flogging and the spirit ration in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, and secured the abolition of flogging in September 1850. In 1851 Hale served as counsel in the trials of anti-slavery activists that arose out of their forcible rescue of fugitive slave

Shadrach Minkins Shadrach Minkins (c. 1814 – December 13, 1875) was an African-American fugitive slave from Virginia who escaped in 1850 and reached Boston. He also used the pseudonyms Frederick Wilkins and Frederick Jenkins.Collison (1998), p. 1. He is known fo ...

from the custody of the

United States Marshal The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMS is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Justice, operating under the direction of the Attorney General, but serves as the enforcem ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Hale was an unsuccessful candidate for

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

on the Free Soil ticket in 1852, losing to Pierce. (See U.S. presidential election, 1852.) In March 1853, Hale was succeeded in the Senate by Democrat

, and began practicing law in New York City.

Return to the Senate

Following the repeal of the

Missouri Compromise The Missouri Compromise was a federal legislation of the United States that balanced desires of northern states to prevent expansion of slavery in the country with those of southern states to expand it. It admitted Missouri as a Slave states an ...

, Democrats were again overthrown in New Hampshire. Hale was elected to the Senate as a member of the new Republican Party in 1855, replacing

, who had been appointed following the death of

. James Bell, a fellow Republican, was elected to New Hampshire's other Senate seat in the same election. Hale was re-elected Senator in 1859, in total serving from July 30, 1855, to March 3, 1865. He served as the

chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

of the

Senate Republican Conference The Senate Republican Conference is the formal organization of the Republican Senators in the United States Senate, who currently number 50. Over the last century, the mission of the conference has expanded and been shaped as a means of informi ...

until 1862. In 1862 Hale succeeded in repealing the Navy's spirit ration, which he had attempted during his first Senate term.

Minister to Spain

President Lincoln nominated Hale to the post of minister to Spain and he served in that capacity 1865–1869.United States Department of State list of ambassadors
/ref> Hale attributed his April 1869 recall to a quarrel with Horatio J. Perry, his secretary of legation. Perry had accused Hale of violating his diplomatic privilege of importing free of duty merchandise for his official or personal use by putting some goods up for sale and pocketing the proceeds. Hale's answer was that he had been misled about the rules by a commission merchant friendly to Perry. Perry was himself removed from his post in June 1869.

Death and burial

Hale died in Dover, New Hampshire on November 19, 1873. He was buried at Pine Hill Cemetery in Dover.

Legacy

Hale's

Federal style Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was heavily based on the works of Andrea Palladio with several inn ...

house, built in 1813, is now part of the Woodman Institute Museum. New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 264 on Central Avenue in Dover marks the site of his home. Portraits of President Lincoln and John P. Hale hang next to each other in the chamber of the

Family

On September 2, 1834 Hale married Lucy Hill Lambert (1814–1902) in

Berwick, Maine Berwick is a town in York County, Maine, United States, situated in the southern part of the state beside the Salmon Falls River. Today's South Berwick was set off from Berwick in 1814, North Berwick in 1831. The population was 7,950 at th ...

. They were the parents of two daughters, Elizabeth (Lizzie) (1835–1895) and Lucy (1841–1915). Elizabeth Hale first married Edward Kinsley (1825–1888). Their only child died shortly after birth. Her second husband was William Henry 'Harry' Jacques (1847–1916).

Lucy Lambert Hale Lucy Lambert Hale (January 1, 1841 – October 15, 1915) was the daughter of U.S. Senator John Parker Hale of New Hampshire, and was a noted Washington, D.C., society ''belle''. She attracted many admirers including Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Ro ...

was secretly betrothed in 1865 to

John Wilkes Booth John Wilkes Booth (May 10, 1838 – April 26, 1865) was an American stage actor who assassinated United States President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. A member of the prominent 19th-century Booth th ...

's assassin. Booth had a picture of Lucy Hale with him when he was shot and killed by Sergeant

Boston Corbett Thomas H. "Boston" Corbett (January 29, 1832 – presumed dead September 1, 1894) was an American Union Army soldier who shot and killed U.S. president Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth. Corbett was initially arrested for disob ...

on April 26, 1865.Ford's Theater National Historic Site – National Park Service
/ref> Lucy Hale eventually married Senator

William E. Chandler William Eaton Chandler (December 28, 1835November 30, 1917), also known as Bill Chandler, was a lawyer who served as United States Secretary of the Navy and as a U.S. Senator from New Hampshire. In the 1880s, he was a member of the Republican "H ...

References

External links

* *
Hale-Chandler Papers
at Dartmouth College Library , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hale, John P. 1806 births 1873 deaths 19th-century American diplomats 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century American politicians Activists from New Hampshire Ambassadors of the United States to Spain American abolitionists American political party founders Bowdoin College alumni Independent United States senators Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire Free Soil Party United States senators New Hampshire Free Soilers New Hampshire Independents New Hampshire lawyers New Hampshire Oppositionists Republican Party members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives People from Rochester, New Hampshire People of New Hampshire in the American Civil War Phillips Exeter Academy alumni Republican Party United States senators from New Hampshire Speakers of the New Hampshire House of Representatives United States Attorneys for the District of New Hampshire Candidates in the 1848 United States presidential election Candidates in the 1852 United States presidential election People from Dover, New Hampshire