Peter Rawson Taft (April 14, 1785 – January 1, 1867) was an American politician. He was

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

's paternal grandfather.

Early life and family

Peter was born to Aaron Taft and Rhoda Rawson on April 14, 1785 at

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxbrid ...

Worcester County, Massachusetts Worcester County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 862,111, making it the second-most populous county in Massachusetts while also b ...

. The

Aaron Taft House The Aaron Taft House is an historic house at 215 Hazel Street, in Uxbridge, Massachusetts. Built about 1749, it is one of five surviving gambrel-roofed 18th-century houses in the town. It is stories in height, with a side-gabled gambrel roof, ...

in Uxbridge is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Aaron was a farmer, first in Uxbridge and then later in

Townshend, Vermont Townshend is a New England town, town in Windham County, Vermont, Windham County, Vermont, United States. The town was named for the Townshend family, powerful figures in British politics. The population was 1,291 at the 2020 United States Census, ...

. Aaron Taft (1743–1808), Peter Rawson Taft's father, in turn, was the son of Peter Taft. Peter was the grandson of Robert Taft Sr. (1640-1725), the first Taft who immigrated to

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and settled at Mendon and Uxbridge, Massachusetts. Peter Rawson Taft was then the 5th generation descendant of the first Taft in America, Robert Taft Sr. Uxbridge and Mendon were the birthplace of the famous

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

Taft family. Rhoda Rawson, the mother of Peter Rawson Taft, was a descendant of Edward Rawson, who came from England to

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

in 1636, and was for thirty-five years secretary of the

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as the ...

. Aaron Taft, the father of Peter Rawson Taft, was educated at

Princeton College Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

. Meeting with severe losses in Massachusetts, he took his family to Vermont around 1800, when Peter Rawson Taft was about 15 years of age. Peter Rawson Taft was reared a farmer, with a common-school education in Uxbridge and Townshend. A Taft family story tells of Peter Rawson Taft leading a cow all the way from Uxbridge to Townshend, Vermont when the family moved.

Marriage and first child

Peter Rawson Taft married Sylvia Howard of Townshend, Vermont,

Windham County, Vermont Windham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 45,905. The shire town (county seat) is Newfane, and the largest municipality is the town of Brattleboro. History Fort Bridgman, Vernon ...

. She was the daughter of Levi Howard, and Bethiah Chapin of Townshend around 1810 in Townshend. Their first son was

Alphonso Taft Alphonso Taft (November 5, 1810 – May 21, 1891) was an American jurist, diplomat, politician, United States Attorney General, Attorney General and United States Secretary of War, Secretary of War under President of the United States, President U ...

, born on November 5, 1810 at Townshend.

Career as a lawyer and legislator

He was a man of intellectual tastes and capacity, and educated himself after leaving school, so that he subsequently was admitted to the bar and practiced law. He served many years in the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives ar ...

, and was judge of the Probate and County Courts of Windham County, Vermont. Peter Rawson Taft I's son, Alphonso, was born in Townshend, Vermont. Peter Rawson Taft I, later moved with his family to

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

, and the Taft Family grew to be a political dynasty in Cincinnati and Hamilton County as well as the State of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, and the United States.

Afterward

Peter's son, Alphonso Taft (1810–1891), became the

U.S. Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of th ...

(1876), and

U.S. Attorney General The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

(1876–1877). Alphonso Taft founded

Skull and Bones Skull and Bones, also known as The Order, Order 322 or The Brotherhood of Death, is an undergraduate senior secret student society at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. The oldest senior class society at the university, Skull and Bone ...

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

. Peter Rawson Taft died at age 81 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Peter's grandson,

became the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

from 1909-1913. He was also the only

to serve as Chief Justice of the United States. The Taft family continued the tradition of returning to Uxbridge for family reunions. Another grandson was

Charles Phelps Taft Charles Phelps Taft (December 21, 1843 – December 31, 1929) was an American lawyer and politician who served as editor of the ''Cincinnati Times-Star'' and owned both the Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago Cubs baseball teams. From 1895 to 1897 ...

, a newspaperman in

who became the first owner of the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taft, Peter Rawson 1785 births 1867 deaths Taft family American people of English descent People from Uxbridge, Massachusetts Politicians from Cincinnati People from Windham County, Vermont Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Vermont lawyers Ohio lawyers 19th-century American politicians Lawyers from Cincinnati 19th-century American lawyers