Joseph Kirkland (January 18, 1770 – January 26, 1844) was an American lawyer and politician from

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Early life

Joseph Kirkland was born on January 18, 1770, in Newent Society, in that part of the Town of Norwich which was later separated as the Town of

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

, in New London County, Connecticut, to Joseph Kirkland and Hannah Perkins. Kirkland graduated from Yale College in 1790. Then he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1794.

Career

Kirkland commenced practice in

New Hartford, New York New Hartford is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Oneida County, New York, United States. As of the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census, the town population was 22,166. The name of New Hartford was provided by a settler fam ...

. He was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

( Oneida Co.) in

1804 Events January–March * January 1 – Haiti gains independence from France, and becomes the first black republic, having the only successful slave revolt ever. * February 4 – The Sokoto Caliphate is founded in West Africa. * Februar ...

and 1804–05. He moved to Utica in 1813, and was District Attorney for the Sixth District (comprising Otsego, Herkimer and Oneida counties) from 1813 to 1816. He was again a member of the State Assembly in

1818 Events January–March * January 1 ** Battle of Koregaon: Troops of the British East India Company score a decisive victory over the Maratha Empire. ** Mary Shelley's ''Frankenstein'' is published anonymously in London. * January 2 – ...

(Oneida Co.) and in 1820-21 (Oneida and Oswego Co.). He was elected as a

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to the

17th United States Congress The 17th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. While its term was officially March 4, 1821, t ...

, holding office from December 3, 1821, to March 4, 1823. Afterwards he resumed the practice of law, and was again a member of the State Assembly (Oneida Co.) in

1825 Events January–March * January 4 – King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies dies in Naples and is succeeded by his son, Francis. * February 3 – Vendsyssel-Thy, once part of the Jutland peninsula forming westernmost Denmark, becomes a ...

; When Utica was incorporated as a city in 1832, Kirkland became the new city's first mayor and served from 1832 to 1836. Williams, J.C., 1906, p. 146

Personal life

Kirkland had 2 daughters with his girlfriend Sarah Backus: * Sarah Backus Kirkland (1810 - July 15, 1872), who married John Gelston Floyd. * Louisa Kirkland (January 18, 1813 – June 1885), who married Charles Tracy, an author and attorney.

Death

Kirkland died on January 26, 1844, in Utica, New York; and was buried at the Forest Hill Cemetery there.

References

*
''The New York Civil List''
compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 71, 177f, 193, 197, 202, 286 and 368; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkland, Joseph 1770 births 1844 deaths People from Lisbon, Connecticut People of colonial Connecticut Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Mayors of Utica, New York County district attorneys in New York (state) Yale College alumni Burials at Forest Hill Cemetery (Utica, New York)