Samuel Shaw (December 1768October 23, 1827) was an American politician. 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 they ...

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 ...

Biography

Shaw was born in Dighton in the

Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in British America which became one of the Thirteen Colonies, thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III of England, William III and Mary II ...

to John Shaw and Molly Hudson. He moved to

Putney, Vermont Putney is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,617 at the 2020 census. The town's historic core makes up the Putney Village Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Histo ...

, at the age of ten, and received limited schooling as a youth. He moved to Castleton in the

Vermont Republic The Vermont Republic ( French: ''République du Vermont''), officially known at the time as the State of Vermont ( French: ''État du Vermont''), was an independent state in New England that existed from January 15, 1777, to March 4, 1791. The ...

in 1789 and studied medicine for two years, and then commenced the

practice of medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

in Castleton. Shaw was elected to both 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 ...

in 1800. He served from 1800 until 1807, and was

Presidential Elector The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia appo ...

from Vermont in 1804. He was elected as a

Democratic-Republican The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early ...

candidate to the Tenth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of

James Witherell James Witherell (June 16, 1759 – January 9, 1838) was an American politician. He served as a United States representative from Vermont and as a Judge of the Supreme Court for the Territory of Michigan. Biography Witherell was born in Mansfi ...

. He was reelected to the Eleventh and Twelfth Congresses and served from September 6, 1808, to March 3, 1813. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

during 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 bega ...

as a hospital surgeon from April 6, 1813, to June 15, 1815, when he was honorably discharged. He was reinstated on September 13, 1815; appointed post surgeon April 18, 1818, and resigned on December 31, 1818. Shaw is not to be confused with the early whistleblower Samuel Shaw, who had been arrested by

Esek Hopkins Esek Hopkins (April 26, 1718February 26, 1802) was an American naval officer, merchant captain, and privateer. Achieving the rank of Commodore, Hopkins was the only Commander in Chief of the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War ...

during the Revolutionary War. Representative Shaw would have been nine at the time of the incident.

Family life

Shaw married Sally Campbell in 1788. Shaw's son Henry Shaw also served in the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

as United States Representative from Massachusetts, serving from 1817 until 1821.

Death

Shaw died on October 23, 1827, in Clarendon Springs. He is interred at Castleton Congregational Cemetery in Castleton, Vermont.

References

External links

*
Biographical Directory of the United States Congress: SHAW, Samuel, (1768 - 1827)

govtrack.us: Rep. Samuel Shaw

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaw, Samuel 1768 births 1827 deaths Members of the Vermont House of Representatives People from Dighton, Massachusetts Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont People of colonial Massachusetts United States Army personnel of the War of 1812 Burials in Vermont People from Putney, Vermont People from Castleton, Vermont