Joseph Benham was U.S. Attorney for the District of Ohio in 1823, son of Captain Robert Benham and born in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. In 1815, Joseph graduated from the

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

Athens, Ohio Athens is a city and the county seat of Athens County, Ohio. The population was 23,849 at the 2020 census. Located along the Hocking River within Appalachian Ohio about southeast of Columbus, Athens is best known as the home of Ohio Universit ...

, its first graduation class. In his book ''Old Court House'', Judge Carter reported that Benham "wore a large buff vest and a brown broadcloth frock coat. He had a graceful and easy delivery. His voice was extremely deep but melodious, and according to the narrator was a most impressive one." On February 27, 1823, President

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...

appointed him U.S. Attorney for the District of Ohio. In 1825, Benham delivered a welcome speech to General La Fayette on behalf of the City of Cincinnati. Ten years later, in 1835, Benham became one of three law professors at the

Cincinnati College The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrol ...

where

Jacob Burnet Jacob Burnet (sometimes spelled Burnett) (February 22, 1770May 10, 1853) was an American jurist and statesman from Ohio. He served as a U.S. Senator. Early life Burnet was born in Newark, New Jersey, the son of Dr. William Burnet. He graduated ...

(an associate of his father in the first popularly elected legislature in Ohio)served on the Board of Trustees. In 1839 Benham was one of several persons interviewed by the Ohio Democratic Party to possibly receive their nomination to the

U.S. 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 powe ...

to replace U.S. Senator Thomas Morris.Wesenberger, Francis; The History of Ohio, 1825-1850; The Ohio State Archeological and Historical Society; (1941); Page 379 Joseph Benham died on July 15, 1840, when returning from New Orleans. He was buried in the Presbyterian Cemetery in Louisville. On January 1, 1858, he was re-interred in the

Spring Grove Cemetery Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum () is a nonprofit rural cemetery and arboretum located at 4521 Spring Grove Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the third largest cemetery in the United States, after the Calverton National Cemetery and Abraham L ...

in Cincinnati; his wife Maria was buried there July 3, 1884. Joseph Benham was first married to Isabella Greer. Their daughter, Harriette G. Benham, married

George D. Prentice George Dennison Prentice (December 18, 1802 – January 22, 1870) was an American newspaper editor, writer and poet who built the ''Louisville Journal'' into a major newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky, and the Ohio River Valley, in part by the vir ...

, editor of the Louisville Journal. Their son, Calhoun Benham, became a U.S. District Attorney for California, and later served in the Confederate Army. After Isabella's death, Joseph Benham married Maria Slacum, and their daughter Ada married Charles Snowden, Lord Fairfax of California.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Benham, Joseph Ohio University alumni University of Cincinnati faculty 1840 deaths People from Kentucky United States Attorneys for the District of Ohio University of Cincinnati College of Law faculty Burials at Spring Grove Cemetery Year of birth missing