Lorenzo Crounse (January 27, 1834May 13, 1909) was a

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and the eighth Governor of Nebraska.

Early life

Born in

Sharon Sharon ( he, שָׁרוֹן ''Šārôn'' "plain") is a given name as well as an Israeli surname. In English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name. However, historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In I ...

Schoharie County, New York Schoharie County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 29,714, making it the state's fifth-least populous county. The county seat is Schoharie. "Schoharie" comes from a Mohawk word meaning "f ...

, Crounse attended the New York Conference Seminary in

Charlotteville, New York Charlotteville is a hamlet in the town of Summit, Schoharie County, New York, United States. Charlotteville is southwest of Richmondville. The community has a post office with ZIP code 12036. The Bute-Warner-Truax Farm, which is listed on t ...

. While teaching school, he studied law and in 1857 he was admitted to the bar. In 1860, he married Mary E. Griffiths and they had four children.

Career

Crounse established a law practice at

Fort Plain, New York Fort Plain is a village in Montgomery County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 2,322. The village is named after a fort built during the American Revolution at the junction of the Mohawk River and its tr ...

. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

he organized Battery K, New York Light Artillery and became a captain in 1861, served for a year; but was discharged after suffering wounds at a battle on the

Rappahannock River The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 It traverses the entir ...

in Virginia and resumed his law practice. Lorenzo Crounse - Brady-Handy

Crounse moved to the

Nebraska Territory The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Nebraska. The Nebraska ...

in 1864, and became part of the territorial legislature and later was a delegate to the state's constitutional convention. He became a Justice of Nebraska state supreme court from 1867 to 1873, and after his term expired, ran and was elected as a

to the Forty-third and Forty-fourth Congresses (1873–1877). He declined to run again in 1876. He became an internal revenue collector for the district of Nebraska in 1879, and then was appointed Assistant Secretary of the United States Treasury on April 27, 1891. He resigned on October 31, 1892 to become the 8th governor of Nebraska. During his term, future Nebraska representative William E. Andrews worked as his private secretary. He served until 1895, and then served briefly in the Nebraska state senate in 1901.

Death and legacy

After his wife, Mary E. Griffiths Crounse (1836-1882) died, Crounse remained a widower, and he spent his last years with one of his four children. He died in

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

. The now-extinct village of Crounse, Nebraska, near Lincoln was named after him.

References

External links

* papers at the

Nebraska State Historical Society History Nebraska, formerly the Nebraska State Historical Society is a Nebraska state agency, founded in 1878 to "encourage historical research and inquiry, spread historical information ... and to embrace alike aboriginal and modern history." I ...

. Retrieved on 2009-07-06.
Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crounse, Lorenzo 1834 births 1909 deaths 19th-century American politicians Republican Party governors of Nebraska Members of the Nebraska Territorial Legislature Republican Party Nebraska state senators Justices of the Nebraska Supreme Court New York (state) lawyers American Lutherans People from Fort Plain, New York People from Schoharie County, New York People of New York (state) in the American Civil War Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Nebraska Union Army soldiers United States Assistant Secretaries of the Treasury 19th-century American judges 19th-century Lutherans