Martin Chittenden (March 12, 1763September 5, 1840) was an American politician from

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...

. 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 the ...

from 1803 to 1813 and as the seventh

governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...

from 1813 to 1815, during a crucial portion of the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It ...

Biography

Chittenden was born in

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

in the

Colony of Connecticut The ''Connecticut Colony'' or ''Colony of Connecticut'', originally known as the Connecticut River Colony or simply the River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636 as a settl ...

Thomas Chittenden Thomas Chittenden (January 6, 1730August 25, 1797) was an American politician from Vermont, who was a leader of the territory for nearly two decades. Chittenden was the first and third governor of the state of Vermont, serving from 1778 to 1789 ...

and Elizabeth Meigs Chittenden. He moved to Vermont in 1776 in the wake of the founding of the town of Williston by his father Thomas Chittenden. Martin Chittenden attended Mares School and in 1789 graduated from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university Dartmouth College, the U.S. Army Corps of ...

. After graduating from Dartmouth College, Chittenden moved to Jericho, Vermont and was involved in agricultural and mercantile pursuits. He was appointed Justice of the Peace in October 1789, and in 1791 he served as a delegate to the state convention that ratified the United States Constitution. He served as aide-de-camp to Lieutenant Governor Peter Olcott in 1790, and from 1790 until 1793 he served as clerk of the county court of

Chittenden County, Vermont Chittenden County () is the List of counties in Vermont, most populous county in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, its population was 168,323. The county seat is Vermont's most populous municipality, t ...

. Chittenden served as a member of the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4 ...

from 1790 until 1796. He was judge of the Chittenden County Court from 1793 until 1795, and served as chief justice of the Chittenden County Court from 1796 until 1813. He was the first

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

collector for Chittenden County. He was appointed a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the Vermont Militia's 1st Regiment, 7th Division in 1793, and promoted to lieutenant colonel and regimental commander in 1794. In 1799 he was promoted to

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed t ...

(later

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

) and commander of the 3rd Division, a post he held until 1803. Chittenden was elected as a

Federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of de ...

candidate to the Eighth Congress and was reelected to the Ninth Congress, Tenth Congress, Eleventh Congress and Twelfth Congress, serving from March 4, 1803 until March 3, 1813. He was elected

Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...

in 1813, replacing his brother-in-law,

Jonas Galusha Jonas Galusha (February 11, 1753September 24, 1834) was the sixth and eighth governor of Vermont for two terms in the early 19th century. Biography Galusha, born in Norwich in the Colony of Connecticut, moved with his siblings and his parent ...

, who was also his successor in the post. Chittenden served as governor from October 23, 1813 until October 14, 1815. He was the last Federalist governor of Vermont. During his term as governor, fighting between American and British forces was fierce on the current United States–Canada border. In November 1813, conscious of the British encroachment on

Plattsburgh, New York Plattsburgh ( moh, Tsi ietsénhtha) is a city in, and the seat of, Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the 2020 census. The population of the surroundin ...

, members of the Vermont

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non- professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

asked Chittenden to let them intervene. Chittenden declined, though the militia leaders claimed that this was the result of pressure from his advisers. After his retirement from elected office, Chittenden served as town representative of Williston and as a

probate judge A probate court (sometimes called a surrogate court) is a court that has competence in a jurisdiction to deal with matters of probate and the administration of estates. In some jurisdictions, such courts may be referred to as Orphans' Courts o ...

from 1821 until 1823.

Family life

Chittenden's father,

, was the first governor of Vermont. He was the brother in law of Matthew Lyon and

. Lyon married Martin Chittenden's sister Beulah (1764–1824), and Jonas Galusha's four wives (all of whom predeceased him) included Chittenden's sister Mary (1758–1794). Martin Chittenden was the uncle of Matthew Lyons' son Chittenden Lyon, a United States Representative from Kentucky.

Death and burial

Chittenden died on September 5, 1840 in

Williston, Vermont Williston is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. Originally rural and laid out with many farms, in recent decades it has developed into a thriving suburb of Burlington, the largest city in the state of Vermont. As of the 2020 ce ...

in 1840. He is interred at the Thomas Chittenden Cemetery in Williston.

References

External links

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
*

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20170712193142/http://www.vermont.gov/portal/ Vermont.gov
The Political Graveyard: Thomas Chittenden (1730–1797)

* ttp://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/martin_chittenden/402511 Govtrack.us: Rep. Martin Chittenden
Correspondence of Martin Chittenden

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chittenden, Martin 1763 births 1840 deaths People from Salisbury, Connecticut People of colonial Connecticut Chittenden family Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont Federalist Party state governors of the United States Governors of Vermont Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Vermont state court judges People from Williston, Vermont Dartmouth College alumni

Biography

Family life

Death and burial

References

Further reading

External links