John Jeremiah Jacob (December 9, 1829November 24, 1893) was a Democratic politician from Green Spring ( Hampshire County),

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

. Jacob served two terms as the fourth governor of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

. John Jeremiah Jacob was also elected to the

West Virginia House of Delegates The West Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the West Virginia Legislature. Only three states—Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia—refer to their lower house as the House of Delegates. Organization Regular sessions begin with ...

from Hampshire County in 1868 and from Ohio County in 1893.

Background

John Jeremiah Jacob was born in Green Spring, Virginia on the

Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augus ...

, north of Romney. Jacob's Hampshire County roots made him the first of West Virginia's governors to be born within the present-day borders of the state. Jacob attended the

Romney Academy Romney Academy was an educational institution for higher learning in Romney, Virginia (now West Virginia). Romney Academy was first incorporated by the Virginia General Assembly on January 11, 1814, and was active until 1846 when it was reorgani ...

in Romney and

Dickinson College , mottoeng = Freedom is made safe through character and learning , established = , type = Private liberal arts college , endowment = $645.5 million (2022) , president = J ...

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...

, Pennsylvania. Jacob practiced law and taught school in Hampshire County before accepting a teaching position at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

in 1853. In 1858, he married Jane Baird."West Virginia's First Ladies," West Virginia Division of Culture and History, June 2007. Jacob worked as an attorney in Missouri during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

and returned to Romney after the war in 1865 to establish a law practice. In 1868, John Jeremiah Jacob was elected to the

Governor (1871–1877)

Jacob was elected governor in

1870 Events January–March * January 1 ** The first edition of ''The Northern Echo'' newspaper is published in Priestgate, Darlington, England. ** Plans for the Brooklyn Bridge are completed. * January 3 – Construction of the Broo ...

to a two-year term making him the first of six consecutive Democratic governors. Jacob supported the elimination of all remaining legislation that discriminated against former Confederates. Jacob also presided over the establishment of new facilities to care for the mentally handicapped and the creation of statewide schools, known as normal schools, to train teachers. Most of these schools still exist as part of the state college system. GovernorJacob

John Jeremiah Jacob's most important contribution as governor was the rewriting of West Virginia's state constitution. Moderates and former Confederate supporters themselves believed the original 1863 constitution was too biased in favor of pro-Union supporters. A new constitutional convention, controlled by Democrats, met in Charleston in 1872. The new constitution restricted the power of the legislature and expanded the governor's term in office from two to four years, prohibiting consecutive terms. In

1872 Events January–March * January 12 – Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first ruler crowned in that city in over 500 years. * February 2 – The government of the United Kingdom buys a number of forts on ...

Jacob was denied renomination by the Democratic Party, which was controlled by Camden. Jacob ran on the ''ad hoc'' "People's Independent" ticket with Republican support. He was re-elected by 2400 votes for a four-year term.Richard E. Fast, ''The history and government of West Virginia'' (1901) p 181 Camden's men controlled the legislature, and passed "ripper" laws that stripped Jacob of his appointment powers. In 1875, the state government moved from Charleston and returned the capitol to Wheeling in Ohio County. After Jacob left the governor's office, he served once again in the West Virginia House of Delegates from Ohio County in 1879 and as its circuit judge from 1881 to 1888. Jacob continued to practice law in Wheeling until his death in 1893.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacob, John Jeremiah 1829 births 1893 deaths Burials at Indian Mound Cemetery Dickinson College alumni Educators from West Virginia Governors of West Virginia Members of the West Virginia House of Delegates Missouri lawyers People from Hampshire County, West Virginia Politicians from Wheeling, West Virginia University of Missouri faculty West Virginia Democrats West Virginia lawyers West Virginia circuit court judges Democratic Party governors of West Virginia Independent state governors of the United States Republican Party governors of West Virginia West Virginia Independents Lawyers from Wheeling, West Virginia 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century American judges

Background

Governor (1871–1877)

See also

References

Further reading

External links