Jonathan Brace (November 12, 1754 – August 26, 1837) was an eighteenth-century American lawyer, politician and judge. He served as a

United States Representative 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

Biography

Brace was born in Harwinton in the Connecticut Colony, the son of Jonathan Brace and Mary (Messenger) Brace. He attended the common schools and graduated from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in 1779. He studied law under

Oliver Ellsworth Oliver Ellsworth (April 29, 1745 – November 26, 1807) was a Founding Father of the United States, attorney, jurist, politician, and diplomat. Ellsworth was a framer of the United States Constitution, United States senator from Connecticut ...

, future Chief Justice of the United States. Brace was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

Bennington, Vermont Bennington is a town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester. As of the 2020 US Census, the population was 15,333. Bennington is the most populous t ...

in 1779, and began the practice of law in

Pawlet, Vermont Pawlet is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,424 at the 2020 census. History Pawlet was one of the New Hampshire Grants, chartered from Benning Wentworth, Governor of colonial New Hampshire. The charter was gr ...

. Brace moved to

Manchester, Vermont Manchester is a town in, and one of two shire towns (county seats) of, Bennington County, Vermont. The population was 4,484 at the 2020 census. Manchester Village, an incorporated village, and Manchester Center are settlement centers within t ...

in 1782 and continued practicing law. He was a member of the

council of censors A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

to revise the constitution as well as a

prosecuting attorney A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal trial ...

for

Bennington County Bennington County is a county in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,347. The shire towns (county seats) are jointly Bennington ("The Southshire") and Manchester ("The Northshire"), and the largest municipal ...

from 1784 to 1785. He then moved to

Glastonbury, Connecticut Glastonbury ( ) is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, formally founded in 1693 and first settled in 1636. It was named after Glastonbury in Somerset, England. Glastonbury is on the banks of the Connecticut River, southeast ...

in January 1786 but was not admitted to the Connecticut bar until 1790. Brace was a member of the

Connecticut General Assembly The Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. Th ...

in 1788 and from 1791 to 1794. He was chosen assistant in the council in May 1798. Brace moved to Hartford, Connecticut in 1794 and was a judge of the city court from 1797 until 1815, with the exception of two years. He was elected as a Federalist candidate to the Fifth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Joshua Coit, and was reelected to the Sixth Congress. He served in Congress from December 3, 1798 until his resignation in May 1800. He served as an assistant in the council of the State from 1802 to 1818. Brace was appointed prosecuting attorney for

Hartford County Hartford County is a county located in the north central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. According to the 2020 census, the population was 899,498, making it the second-most populous county in Connecticut. Hartford County contains the ...

in December 1807 and served until May 1809, when he resigned. He was appointed judge of the county court and of probate in May 1809 and continued as judge of the county court until 1821 and as judge of probate until 1824. He was the mayor of Hartford from 1815 to 1824, and was also a member of the state senate in 1819 and 1820. He died in Hartford on August 26, 1837 and was buried in the Old North Cemetery in Hartford.

Personal life

Brace was married to Ann White Brace. Their son Thomas Kimberly Brace was the principal founder and developer of the

Aetna Insurance Company Aetna Inc. () is an American managed health care company that sells traditional and consumer directed health care insurance and related services, such as medical, pharmaceutical, dental, behavioral health, long-term care, and disability plans, ...

References

External links

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress: BRACE, Jonathan, (1754 - 1837)

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Brace, Jonathan 1754 births 1837 deaths Members of the Connecticut General Assembly Council of Assistants (1662–1818) Yale College alumni Connecticut Land Company Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut People from Harwinton, Connecticut