John Wheeler (February 11, 1823 – April 1, 1906) was a

United States 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 ...

from New York.

Biography

Wheeler was born in Humphreysville (now Seymour),

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

on February 11, 1823. He attended the common schools in

Cheshire, Connecticut Cheshire ( ), formerly known as New Cheshire Parish, is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Cheshire was 28,733. The center of population of Connecticut is located in Cheshir ...

, moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in 1843. He was engaged in the hotel business with his father, and later became a dry-goods clerk. 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 was elected to the Thirty-third and Thirty-fourth Congresses (March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1857) as the representative of New York's sixth district. Wheeler declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1856 to the Thirty-fifth Congress. Wheeler served as commissioner and president of the New York City's Department of Taxes and Assessments from 1872–1880, and later served as a member of the Board of Estimates and Apportionments and Commissioner of Accounts. In the 1870s he was a member of the Committee of Seventy, a group of anti-

Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...

Democrats who worked to overthrow

William M. Tweed William Magear Tweed (April 3, 1823 – April 12, 1878), often erroneously referred to as William "Marcy" Tweed (see below), and widely known as "Boss" Tweed, was an American politician most notable for being the political boss of Tammany ...

, and elected

William Frederick Havemeyer William Frederick Havemeyer (February 12, 1804 – November 30, 1874) was a German American businessman and politician who served three times as Mayor of New York City during the 19th century. Early years Havemeyer was born in Staten Island, Ne ...

as Mayor of New York City. He died in New York City on April 1, 1906 and was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wheeler, John 1823 births 1906 deaths Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians