Thomas Beekman (July 4, 1790 – February 2, 1870) was an American politician and a U.S. Representative from

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Biography

Beekman was born in Kinderhook, New York to John J. Beekman and Annatje Pruyn. His elder brother was Dr. John Pruyn Beekman (1788–1861), a member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan com ...

from 1845 to 1847. Beekman studied law and became an

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and farmer in Smithfield and later

Peterboro Peterboro, located approximately southeast of Syracuse, New York, is a historic hamlet and currently the administrative center for the Town of Smithfield, Madison County, New York, United States. Peterboro has a Post Office, ZIP code 13134 ...

Career

Beekman served in local offices including as a town clerk, and was active in the militia as aide-de-camp to the commander of its 17th Division. Beekman was also active in the Anti-Masonic movement of the 1820s and 1830s. Elected as an Anti-Jacksonian to the

Twenty-first Congress The 21st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1829, ...

, Beekman was U. S. Representative for the twenty-second district of New York and served one term, from March 4, 1829, to March 3, 1831. In 1831 he was an unsuccessful Anti-Masonic candidate for the

. Beekman later moved back to Kinderhook, where he farmed, practiced law, was active in several businesses, including the Kinderhook National Bank, and served as Columbia County Excise Commissioner from 1857 to 1859. After his retirement in the 1860s he spent summers in Kinderhook and winters living with his daughter in New York City. He was married to Lydia Van Schaack.

Death

Beekman died in Kinderhook on February 2, 1870 (age 79 years, 213 days). He is interred at Kinderhook Reformed Church Cemetery.Thomas Beekman
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accessed January 15, 2013

References

External links

Govtrack US Congress

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beekman, Thomas 1790 births 1870 deaths People from Kinderhook, New York American people of Dutch descent National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Anti-Masonic Party politicians from New York (state) People from Smithfield, New York People from Peterboro, New York New York (state) lawyers 19th-century American lawyers Beekman family Pruyn family