Peleg Sprague (April 27, 1793 – October 13, 1880) was 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 ...

and a

United States senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...

and a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

of the

United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (in case citations, D. Mass.) is the federal district court whose territorial jurisdiction is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The first court session was he ...

Education and career

Born on April 27, 1793, in

Duxbury Duxbury (alternative older spelling: "Duxborough") is a historic seaside town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. A suburb located on the South Shore approximately to the southeast of Boston, the population was 16,090 at the 20 ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

, Sprague received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1812 from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

, attended

Litchfield Law School The Litchfield Law School of Litchfield, Connecticut, was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietary school was unaffiliated with any college or university. (Wh ...

, then read law in 1815. He was admitted to the bar and entered private practice in Augusta,

District of Maine The District of Maine was the governmental designation for what is now the U.S. state of Maine from October 25, 1780 to March 15, 1820, when it was admitted to the Union as the 23rd state. The district was a part of the Commonwealth of Massachu ...

(then part of Massachusetts) from 1815 to 1817. He continued private practice in Hallowell, Kennebec County, District of Maine (State of

from March 15, 1820) from 1817 to 1821. He was a member of the Maine House of Representatives from 1821 to 1822. He was a corporate member of the

Maine Historical Society The Maine Historical Society is the official state historical society of Maine. It is located at 489 Congress Street in downtown Portland. The Society currently operates the Wadsworth-Longfellow House, a National Historic Landmark, Longfellow ...

. He resumed private practice in Hallowell from 1822 to 1824.

Congressional service

Sprague was elected as a member of the National Republican Party from

Maine's 4th congressional district Maine's 4th congressional district was a congressional district in Maine. It was created in 1821 after Maine achieved statehood in 1820 due to the result of the ratification of the Missouri Compromise The Missouri Compromise was a federal legi ...

to the

United States House of Representatives 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 ...

of the

19th 19 (nineteen) is the natural number following 18 and preceding 20. It is a prime number. Mathematics 19 is the eighth prime number, and forms a sexy prime with 13, a twin prime with 17, and a cousin prime with 23. It is the third full re ...

, 20th and 21st United States Congresses and served from March 4, 1825, until his resignation, effective March 3, 1829, having been elected

United States Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

. He was elected to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

from

and served from March 4, 1829, to January 1, 1835, when he resigned. Following his departure from Congress, Sprague resumed private practice in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Massachusetts from 1836 to 1841. In 1840, he served as a presidential elector on the Whig ticket in 1840.

Opposition to Indian removal

During his time in the Senate, Sprague became a prominent campaigner against President

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

's controversial policy of Indian removal, whereby Indians in the Southern states were to be forcibly relocated to West of the Mississippi River. Sprague argued that the policy was corrupt as it largely relied on bribes for support, and he also attacked the plan for its immorality and lack of humanity, claiming that the Indians would receive no assistance in starting new lives in an alien environment.Georgia and the Conversation over Indian Removal. By: Morris, Michael, Georgia Historical Quarterly, 00168297, Winter 2007, Vol. 91, Issue 4

Federal judicial service

Sprague was nominated by President

John Tyler John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States, serving from 1841 to 1845, after briefly holding office as the tenth vice president in 1841. He was elected vice president on the 1840 Whig tick ...

on July 15, 1841, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge John Davis. He was confirmed by the

on July 16, 1841, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on March 13, 1865, due to his resignation.

Later career and death

Following his resignation from the federal bench, Sprague resumed private practice in Boston from 1865 to 1880. He died on October 13, 1880, in Boston. He was interred in Mount Auburn Cemetery in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

, Massachusetts.

Family

Sprague was the grandfather of Charles F. Sprague, a United States Representative from Massachusetts.

References

Sources

* *
Peleg Sprague. 1815–35
Chapter in: William Willis, ''A history of the law, the courts, and the lawyers of Maine, from its first colonization to the early part of the present century'' (1863) {{DEFAULTSORT:Sprague, Peleg 1793 births 1880 deaths Members of the Maine House of Representatives United States senators from Maine Politicians from Augusta, Maine Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts United States federal judges appointed by John Tyler 19th-century American judges Harvard University alumni National Republican Party United States senators Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery Maine Whigs 19th-century American politicians National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Maine