John Stewart Barry (January 29, 1802– January 14, 1870) was the fourth and eighth

governor of Michigan The governor of Michigan is the head of state, head of government, and chief executive of the U.S. state of Michigan. The current governor is Gretchen Whitmer, a member of the Democratic Party, who was inaugurated on January 1, 2019, as the stat ...

. He was Michigan's only three-term governor in the 19th century. His main accomplishment was to rationalize state finances after the state's internal improvements fiasco.

Early life in New Hampshire and Vermont

Barry was born in

Amherst, New Hampshire Amherst is a town in Hillsborough County in the state of New Hampshire, United States. The population was 11,753 at the 2020 census. Amherst is home to Ponemah Bog Wildlife Sanctuary, Hodgman State Forest, the Joe English Reservation and Baboosi ...

, to John and Ellen (Steward) Barry. While he was young, the family moved to

Rockingham, Vermont Rockingham is a Town in Windham County, on the southeastern Vermont border in the United States, along the Connecticut River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,832. Rockingham includes the incorporated villages of Bellows Falls and Saxt ...

, where he worked on his father's farm and received an education in the local schools. He married Mary Kidder, of

Grafton, Vermont Grafton is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 645 at the 2020 census. History In the early 19th century, sheep raising became popular and multiple woolen mills sprang up along the branches of the Saxtons River. ...

, and in 1824 went to

Georgia, Vermont Georgia is a town in Franklin County, Vermont, United States. The population was 4,845 at the 2020 census. Geography The town occupies the southwest corner of Franklin County, bordered to the south by Chittenden County. The western border of th ...

, where he taught school while studying law. He began to practice law, and while in Georgia he was also a member of the Governor’s staff. Barry was of primarily English ancestry but was also partially of Welsh descent. The bulk of his immigrant ancestors came to

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

from

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

as Puritans in the 1630s and 1640s. Out of his 32 great-great-great grandparents, 31 of them were from Puritans from England and 1 of them was an Anglican from

Montgomeryshire Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county tow ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

Life and politics in Michigan

In 1831, he moved to

White Pigeon, Michigan White Pigeon is a village in St. Joseph County, Michigan, St. Joseph County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,522 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. The village is located within White Pigeon Township, Michigan, White ...

, where he became a merchant and was active in politics. In 1834, Barry moved to

Constantine, Michigan Constantine is a village in St. Joseph County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,076 at the 2010 census. The village is located within Constantine Township. U.S. Highway 131 (Main Street in the village) leads to Kalamazoo to t ...

, and opened a general store in that village's first frame-built building. He became

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

in 1831 while in White Pigeon and continued until 1835. Barry was a prominent participant from the 13th district in the 1835 convention that drafted Michigan's first

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

. When Michigan became a state of the Union in 1837, Barry was a

state senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

(1836, 1840) and was recognized as a leader of the state

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. In 1840, Barry became deeply interested in the cultivation of the

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together wi ...

and visited Europe to obtain information in reference to its culture.

4th and 8th Governor of Michigan

He was selected by the Democratic Party to run for governor in

1841 Events January–March * January 20 – Charles Elliot of the United Kingdom, and Qishan of the Qing dynasty, agree to the Convention of Chuenpi. * January 26 – Britain occupies Hong Kong. Later in the year, the first census of the i ...

. He won that election and was reelected in

1843 Events January–March * January ** Serial publication of Charles Dickens's novel ''Martin Chuzzlewit'' begins in London; in the July chapters, he lands his hero in the United States. ** Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Tell-Tale Heart" ...

. During Barry's first term, the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

first opened for students in 1841 in

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

after moving there from Detroit. The

Michigan Central The Michigan Central Railroad (reporting mark MC) was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan, and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in ...

and Michigan Southern Railroads greatly expanded. In 1845, at the end of his second term, the population of the state was more than 300,000. After a hiatus, the popular Barry was again elected governor in

1849 Events January–March * January 1 – France begins issue of the Ceres series, the nation's first postage stamps. * January 5 – Hungarian Revolution of 1848: The Austrian army, led by Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz, enters in th ...

, serving from 1850 to 1852, becoming the first Michigan governor to serve non-consecutive terms. During Barry’s third term the Normal School (now

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

) was established in Ypsilanti. A new state constitution was adopted in 1850. He was defeated in his

1854 Events January–March * January 4 – The McDonald Islands are discovered by Captain William McDonald aboard the ''Samarang''. * January 6 – The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes is perhaps born. * January 9 – The Teut ...

run for the reelection and again ran unsuccessfully in

1860 Events January–March * January 2 – The discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan is announced at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. * January 10 – The Pemberton Mill in Lawrence, Massachusett ...

. He also ran unsuccessfully to be a

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from Michigan’s 2nd congressional district in 1856 against

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 ...

Henry Waldron Henry Waldron (October 11, 1819 – September 13, 1880) was an American politician and a United States Representative from the U.S. state of Michigan. Early life Waldron was born in Albany, New York, attended Albany Academy, and graduated from Ru ...

. Throughout his career, he was a supporter of the

Wilmot Proviso The Wilmot Proviso was an unsuccessful 1846 proposal in the United States Congress to ban slavery in territory acquired from Mexico in the Mexican–American War. The conflict over the Wilmot Proviso was one of the major events leading to the ...

, intended to stop the spread of slavery, but he remained a member of the Democratic Party, becoming sympathetic with the "ultra" wing during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. He was a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

s of

1856 Events January–March * January 8 – Borax deposits are discovered in large quantities by John Veatch in California. * January 23 – American paddle steamer SS ''Pacific'' leaves Liverpool (England) for a transatlantic voyag ...

and

1864 Events January–March * January 13 – American songwriter Stephen Foster ("Oh! Susanna", "Old Folks at Home") dies aged 37 in New York City, leaving a scrap of paper reading "Dear friends and gentle hearts". His parlor song " ...

Retirement and death

Barry retired to private life after the beginning of the ascendancy of the Republican Party during

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

, and carried on his mercantile business at Constantine. He died at age 67, his wife's death having occurred a year previous, on March 30. . Barry's home in Constantine, the Governor John S. Barry House, has been listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

since 1972.

References

External links

Biographical Portrait
from ''1892 Portrait & Biographical Album of Genesee, Lapeer & Tuscola Counties'', Chapman Bros.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barry, John Steward 1802 births 1870 deaths American justices of the peace People from Amherst, New Hampshire Democratic Party governors of Michigan Democratic Party Michigan state senators People of Michigan in the American Civil War People from Franklin County, Vermont Vermont lawyers Delegates to the 1835 Michigan Constitutional Convention 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers People from Constantine, Michigan People from White Pigeon, Michigan 19th-century Michigan politicians