Thomas Jones Yorke (March 25, 1801 – April 4, 1882) was a US Whig Party politician.

Early life and career

He was born at

Hancock's Bridge, New Jersey Hancock's Bridge (also Hancocks Bridge, without an apostrophe) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Lower Alloways Creek Township, in Salem County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

(now part of Lower Alloways Creek Township), in

Salem County, New Jersey Salem County is the westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its western boundary is formed by the Delaware River and its eastern terminus is the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects the county with New C ...

. 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 ...

, he served as a scout for the United States forces. He studied law, but did not practice, and engaged in mercantile pursuits at Salem. He was county collector of Salem County in 1830. Yorke served as judge of the Salem County

Court of Common Pleas A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...

in 1833, 1834, and 1845–1854 and for a portion of the latter term was presiding judge. He served as a member of the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for ...

in 1835.

Congress

He was elected as a Whig 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

in 1836 and served from March 4, 1837 to March 3, 1839. He was re-elected to the House in 1838 but the House declined to seat him. He was elected to the House in 1840 and served from March 4, 1841 to March 3, 1843. He served as chairman, Committee on Expenditures in the Department of the Navy (Twenty-seventh Congress).

After Congress

Yorke served as a director of the West Jersey Railroad Co., serving as secretary and treasurer in 1853 and as president 1866-1875; also president of the Cape May & Millville Railroad Co.; served as director at various times of the Swedesborough Railroad Co., Salem Railroad Co., Camden & Philadelphia Ferry Co., and West Jersey Marl & Transportation Co. He died in

Salem, New Jersey Salem is a city in Salem County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the city's population was 5,146,

on April 4, 1882, and was there interred in St. John's Episcopal Cemetery.

Sources

Thomas Jones Yorke
at

The Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations of ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yorke, Thomas J. 1801 births 1882 deaths Politicians from Salem County, New Jersey New Jersey state court judges Members of the New Jersey General Assembly Burials at St. John's Episcopal Cemetery, Salem, New Jersey Whig Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey 19th-century American legislators 19th-century American judges