Joseph Stanton Jr. (July 19, 1739December 15, 1821) was a military officer, a United States senator of the

Anti-Federalist Anti-Federalism was a late-18th century political movement that opposed the creation of a stronger U.S. federal government and which later opposed the ratification of the 1787 Constitution. The previous constitution, called the Articles of Con ...

faction and a United States Representative of the

Democratic-Republican The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early ...

party.

Early life

Stanton was born in Charlestown in the

Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...

in 1739. During the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

he served in the expedition against

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

1759. In June 1762 he was elected captain of the Artillery Company of Westerly, Charlestown and Hopkinton, an independent company of the

Rhode Island Militia The Rhode Island Army National Guard (RIARNG) is the land force militia for the U.S. state of Rhode Island. It operates under Title 10 and Title 32 of the United States Code and operates under the command of the state governor while not in fede ...

which still exists as the 169th Military Police Company. He represented Charlestown in the

Rhode Island General Assembly The State of Rhode Island General Assembly is the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. A bicameral body, it is composed of the lower house, lower Rhode Island House of Representatives with 75 re ...

from 1768 to 1774 and again in 1776.

Military service

During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, Stanton was commissioned as the lieutenant colonel of the 1st Kings County Regiment of the Rhode Island Militia in July 1776. He then served as the

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

of a regiment of state troops, raised for 15 months service, from December 12, 1776 until his resignation on November 10, 1777. (The regiment was part of a brigade of two infantry and one artillery regiments which was formed to deter an invasion of the mainland portion of Rhode Island by the British forces occupying Newport.) Civil and Military List of Rhode Island, 1647-1800. In May 1779 he was appointed at the colonel of the 1st Kings County Regiment of the militia and was subsequently appointed a brigadier general in command of the Kings County Brigade of militia in October of the same year. In May 1788 he was promoted to major general in command of the entire Rhode Island Militia. He held this position until his resignation in October 1790.

Political career

He was a delegate to the

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

Constitutional Convention in 1790, which ratified the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...

and enabled Rhode Island to be the last of the 13 colonies to join the Union. He was elected by the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

to serve as one of the first two

U.S. Senators 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 ...

from Rhode Island, and served from June 12, 1790 to March 3, 1793 as a member of the

Anti-Administration Party The Anti-Administration Party was an informal political faction in the United States led by James Madison and Thomas Jefferson that opposed policies of then Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton in the first term of US President George Wa ...

(i.e. opposed to President

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

). He was later elected to the

United States House of Representatives 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

, where he served from March 4, 1801 to March 3, 1807 as a member of the Jeffersonian Democrat-Republican Party. Stanton died in

Lebanon, Connecticut Lebanon is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 7,142 at the 2020 census. The town lies just to the northwest of Norwich, directly south of Willimantic, north of New London, and east of Hartford. The farm ...

in 1821 at the age of 82, and was buried in the Stanton family cemetery in Charlestown.

Legacy

There is a monument to Senator Stanton on

US Route 1 U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, making i ...

Charlestown, Rhode Island Charlestown is a town in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 7,997 at the 2020 census. History Charlestown is named after King Charles II, and was incorporated in 1738. The area was formerly part of the town ...

, in front of his birthplace, which is 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 ...

. The General Stanton Inn in Charlestown is named after him.

References

External links

*Wilkins Updike, ''A History of the Episcopal Church in Narragansett, Rhode Island'' (Boston, 1907) has brief sketch of Stanton o
p. 525
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stanton, Joseph Jr. 1739 births 1821 deaths American militia generals Rhode Island militiamen in the American Revolution United States senators from Rhode Island People from Washington County, Rhode Island People of colonial Rhode Island People of Rhode Island in the French and Indian War Continental Army officers from Rhode Island Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Rhode Island