Ralph Isaacs Ingersoll (February 8, 1789 – August 26, 1872) was a lawyer, politician, and diplomat who served as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives, where he was

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

, 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 ...

from

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

for four consecutive terms from 1825 to 1833, and was the U.S. Minister to the Russian Empire under President

James K. Polk James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. He previously was the 13th speaker of the House of Representatives (1835–1839) and ninth governor of Tennessee (183 ...

in the late 1840s.

Early life

Ingersoll was born in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...

on February 8, 1789. He was the son of Judge Jonathan Ingersoll (1747–1823) and Grace ( née Isaacs) Ingersoll (1772–1850). His father was a judge of the Supreme Court and

Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut The following is a list of lieutenant governors of the State of Connecticut. Lieutenant governors of the State of Connecticut, 1776–present Notes References ;Constitutions * * * ;Specific External linksOfficial website of the L ...

up until his death in 1823. His maternal grandfather, and namesake, was Ralph Isaacs, Jr., a Yale educated merchant who was prominent in New Haven and Branford, and his paternal grandfather was Rev. Jonathan Ingersoll, chaplain for the Connecticut Troops during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

who was the brother of

Jared Ingersoll Sr. Jared Ingersoll (1722, in Milford, Connecticut – August 1781, in New Haven, Connecticut) gained notoriety in Connecticut as agent for the Stamp Act of 1765. Biography Jared Ingersoll Sr. was descended from John Ingersoll Sr. (1626–1684), who ...

, a British colonial official. His grand-uncle's son,

Jared Ingersoll Jared Ingersoll (October 24, 1749 – October 31, 1822) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, and statesman from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress and a signer of the United States Constitution. He se ...

, served as Attorney General of Pennsylvania and was the father of fellow U.S. Representative,

Charles Jared Ingersoll Charles Jared Ingersoll (October 3, 1782 – May 14, 1862) was an American lawyer, writer and politician who served as a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district from 1813 to 1815, Pe ...

, and grandfather of his second cousin, author Edward Ingersoll. His cousin, Ralph Isaacs III, was the father of Mary Esther Malbone Isaacs, who married Chancellor and U.S. Senator

Nathan Sanford Nathan Sanford (November 5, 1777 – October 17, 1838) was an American politician. Early life Sanford was born on November 5, 1777, in Bridgehampton, New York. He was the son of Thomas Sanford and Phebe (née Baker) Sanford, a family of farme ...

in 1813. He pursued classical studies, and was graduated from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in 1808. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1810 and commenced practice in New Haven.

Career

Ingersoll was a member of the State house of representatives from 1820 until 1825 and served as speaker during the last two years. He was elected as an Adams candidate to the Nineteenth and Twentieth Congresses and reelected as an

Anti-Jacksonian The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a political party in the United States that evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John Qu ...

to the Twenty-first and Twenty-second Congresses, serving from March 4, 1825 until March 3, 1833. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1832. He resumed the practice of law and was later appointed State's attorney for New Haven County in 1833. He declined the appointment as

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 ...

tendered by Governor Henry W. Edwards upon the death of Senator Nathan Smith in 1835. On August 8, 1846, he was appointed by Democratic President

(the former Speaker of the House of Representatives) to serve as the sixteenth U.S. Minister to the Russian Empire. He presented his credentials in Russia on May 30, 1847 and served until he resigned and left his post on July 1, 1848. He was elected as a member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

in 1848. He again engaged in the practice of law and was Mayors of New Haven in 1851.

Personal life

In 1814, Ingersoll married Margaret Catharine Eleanora Van den Heuvel (1790–1878). Margaret was the daughter of Charlotte Augusta (née Apthorp) and Jan Cornelis Van den Heuvel, the former governor of the Dutch province of

Demerara Demerara ( nl, Demerary, ) is a historical region in the Guianas, on the north coast of South America, now part of the country of Guyana. It was a colony of the Dutch West India Company between 1745 and 1792 and a colony of the Dutch state ...

from 1765 to 1770 who later moved to New York. Her maternal grandfather was prominent New York landowner Charles Ward Apthorp and her siblings included younger sisters, Maria Eliza van den Heuvel, who married John Church Hamilton (son of U.S. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton), and Susan Augusta Van den Heuvel, the mother of Charlotte Augusta Gibbes, wife of

John Jacob Astor III John Jacob Astor III (June 10, 1822 – February 22, 1890) was an American financier, philanthropist and a soldier during the American Civil War. He was a prominent member of the Astor family, becoming the wealthiest member in his generation and ...

, from her marriage to Thomas Stanyarne Gibbes II. Together, Ralph and Margaret were the parents of seven children: * John Van den Heuvel Ingersoll (1815–1846), a Yale educated lawyer who edited a political paper in Ohio and served as secretary of the Indian Commission. He drowned during a fishing excursion on

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also h ...

. * Ralph Apthorp Ingersoll * Colin Macrae Ingersoll (1819–1903), who was also a member of Congress from Connecticut from 1851 to 1855. He married Julia Harriet Pratt, the daughter of U.S. Representative

Zadock Pratt Zadock Pratt Jr. (October 30, 1790 – April 5, 1871) was a tanner, banker, soldier, and member of the United States House of Representatives. Pratt served in the New York militia from 1819–1826, and was Colonel of the 116th regiment ...

. * Charles Roberts Ingersoll (1821–1903), who served as

Governor of Connecticut The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. state, state's Connecticut Military Department, military forces. The Governor (United States), governor has a duty to enforce state laws, ...

from 1873 to 1877. He married Virginia Gregory, the daughter of Admiral

Francis Gregory Francis Hoyt Gregory (October 9, 1789 – October 4, 1866) was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812 through to the Civil War, serving then as a rear admiral. Early life Gregory was born in Norwalk, Connecticut, the son of ...

. * Grace Suzette Ingersoll (1823–1904) * William Adrian Ingersoll (1825–1865), a

paymaster A paymaster is someone appointed by a group of buyers, sellers, investors or lenders to receive, hold, and dispense funds, commissions, fees, salaries (remuneration) or other trade, loan, or sales proceeds within the private sector or public secto ...

with the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

. * Justine Henrietta Ingersoll (1827–1832), who died young. Ingersoll died in New Haven on August 26, 1872 and was buried in Grove Street Cemetery.

References

External links

*
The Inventory of the Ralph Ingersoll Collection #113
at the

Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center The Mugar Memorial Library is the primary library for study, teaching, and research in the humanities and social sciences for Boston University. It was opened in 1966. Stephen P. Mugar, an Armenian immigrant who was successful in the grocery b ...

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ingersoll, Ralph Isaacs 1789 births 1872 deaths Lawyers from New Haven, Connecticut Ingersoll family American people of English descent Toleration Party politicians National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut Ambassadors of the United States to Russia 19th-century American diplomats Members of the Connecticut House of Representatives Mayors of New Haven, Connecticut Connecticut lawyers Yale College alumni Burials at Grove Street Cemetery 19th-century American lawyers