Jonas Platt Goodsell (1819 Utica,

Oneida County, New York Oneida County is a county in the state of New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 232,125. The county seat is Utica. The name is in honor of the Oneida, one of the Five Nations of the Iroquois League or ''Haudenos ...

– November 22, 1869 Durhamville,

) was an American

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...

and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He was

New York State Engineer and Surveyor New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

from 1866 to 1867.

Life

He was the son of Dr. Thomas Goodsell (1775-1864) and Susan (Livingston) Goodsell (ca. 1797-1864). He was educated at the Utica Academy. He began work on the survey for the enlargement of the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

in 1840, and continued there until 1842. Then he removed to

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population within the city limits was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 195,111 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 cens ...

, to improve his health, and staid there until 1844. On November 27, 1845, he married Lavinia Maria Smith at Durhamville. he was appointed Second Assistant Engineer of the State Canals in 1846, and from 1850 to 1853 was Resident Engineer at

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 ...

. From 1853 to 1856, he was Chief Engineer of the Cape Fear and Deep River Railroad in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. From 1856 to 1860, he was Division Engineer of the Eastern Division, and from 1862 to 1866 of the Middle Division of the New York State Canals. In 1863 and 1864, he was Supervisor of the Town of Utica. He was State Engineer and Surveyor from 1866 to 1867, elected in

1865 Events January–March * January 4 – The New York Stock Exchange opens its first permanent headquarters at Broad Street (Manhattan), 10-12 Broad near Wall Street, in New York City. * January 13 – American Civil War : Sec ...

on the Republican ticket, defeating

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 ...

Sylvanus H. Sweet.

Sources

Engineer's bios, at Rochester history

Political Graveyard

Livingston family tree
''Life Sketches of State Officers, Senators, and Members of Assembly in the State of New York in 1867''
by S. R. Harlow and H. H. Boone (pages 43ff; Weed, Parsons & Co., Albany NY, 1867) {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodsell, Jonas Platt 1819 births 1869 deaths New York State Engineers and Surveyors Politicians from Utica, New York American civil engineers 19th-century American railroad executives Livingston family Town supervisors in New York (state) New York (state) Republicans 19th-century American politicians