Mason Weare Tappan (October 20, 1817 – October 25, 1886) was a

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

state representative, a

U.S. congressman 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 1855 to 1861, a

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 ...

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 the

New Hampshire Attorney General The Attorney General of New Hampshire is a constitutional officer of the U.S. state of New Hampshire who serves as head of the New Hampshire Department of Justice. , the state's attorney general is John Formella. Qualifications and appointment Un ...

. He was born in

Newport, New Hampshire Newport is a town in and the county seat of Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. It is west-northwest of Concord, the state capital. The population of Newport was 6,299 at the 2020 census. A covered bridge is in the northwest. The area ...

, and grew up in

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

. He attended private schools and the Hopkinton and Meriden academies. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1841 and commenced practice in Bradford. Tappan served in the

New Hampshire House of Representatives The New Hampshire House of Representatives is the lower house in the New Hampshire General Court, the bicameral legislature of the state of New Hampshire. The House of Representatives consists of 400 members coming from 204 legislative district ...

1853 to 1855. He was elected as an American Party candidate to the

Thirty-fourth Congress The 34th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1855, ...

and reelected as a Republican to the Thirty-fifth and Thirty-sixth congresses (March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1861). While in Congress, he served as chairman, Committee on Claims (Thirty-sixth Congress). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1860. During the Civil War, he served as colonel of the 1st New Hampshire Infantry, a three-months

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

raised in 1861 in response to President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

's call to arms. He mustered out in August 1861. Tappan died in office as the

at the age of 69. He is buried in Pleasant Hill Cemetery, Bradford, New Hampshire.

References

1817 births 1886 deaths People from Newport, New Hampshire New Hampshire Attorneys General New Hampshire Know Nothings New Hampshire lawyers Republican Party members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives People of New Hampshire in the American Civil War People from Bradford, New Hampshire Union Army colonels Know-Nothing members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers {{NewHampshire-politician-stub