Charles Cotesworth Pinckney Arndt (October 31, 1811February 11, 1842) was an

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 ...

lawyer, Whig politician, and

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

pioneer. While serving as a member of the Council of the

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belmont was ...

, he was shot and killed by fellow councillor,

James Russell Vineyard James Russell Vineyard (January 16, 1801August 30, 1863) was an American Democratic politician and pioneer. He served in the California State Senate and Assembly, and earlier was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, the legislature of the ...

Early life and education

Charles Arndt was born in

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the s ...

, the fifth child of

John Penn Arndt John Penn Arndt (November 25, 1780 – June 10, 1861) was an American merchant, pioneer, and legislator. Born in Durham, Pennsylvania, Arndt built Durham boats with his family near Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He moved to Buffalo, New York, a ...

and his wife Elizabeth (' Carpenter). Charles moved with his parents to the Michigan Territory in 1822, first settling at Mackinac Island, and then continuing west in 1824 to Green Bay, in the territory that would later become

. He graduated from

Rutgers College Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

in 1832, and went on to study law under

Joel Jones Joel "JoJo" Jones-Camacho (born July 17, 1981) is a Puerto Rican-American professional basketball player. Jones has played in the NCAA, Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN) with Vaqueros de Bayamón, Leones de Ponce, Piratas de Quebradillas, and ...

Easton, Pennsylvania Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river that joins the Delaware R ...

, for the next three years. He was admitted to the bar in 1835, and the following year moved back to Green Bay, where he was admitted to practice law in the Michigan Territory.

In the legislature

Arndt was a close friend of Wisconsin Territory Governor

James Duane Doty James Duane Doty (November 5, 1799 – June 13, 1865) was a land speculator and politician in the United States who played an important role in the development of Wisconsin and Utah Territory. Early life and legal career A descendant of ''Mayflo ...

. He became affiliated with the Whig Party and was elected to the Council (upper legislative house) of the

in the Fall 1839 election, representing the vast northeastern district. He served in the

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds or 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Second of arc, an angular measurement unit, ...

and 3rd legislative assemblies. His father had previously served on the Council during the 1st Legislative Assembly.

Death

On February 11, 1842, Arndt was involved in a heated debate on the floor of the Council chamber with

, of Grant County. Arndt was giving passionate support to Enos S. Baker, Governor Doty's nominee to serve as sheriff of Grant County. Vineyard, who was also considered a candidate for the sheriff's office, was staunchly opposed to the confirmation of Baker. During the debate, Arndt produced a number of testimonials from Grant County voters attesting to the quality of Baker's character, which Vineyard declared to be false. Arndt and Vineyard exchanged heated words. A few minutes later, the session was adjourned. Arndt approached Vineyard and asked him directly if he had imputed that his remarks had been false. Vineyard confirmed, and Arndt struck him in the head. Vineyard pulled out a revolver and fired one shot into Arndt's chest. He died in less than five minutes. Vineyard was almost immediately indicted, but was acquitted on grounds of

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force ...

at his trial in October 1843. Vineyard attempted to submit his resignation to the Council on February 14, 1842, but his resignation was rejected, and the Council instead voted 10–1 in favor of expelling him.

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

(who had been doing a lecture tour of the United States at the time of the incident) described the attack as an example of the violent depravity of American culture in his '' American Notes for General Circulation''.

Personal life and family

Arndt was a descendant of Bernhard Arndt, an early settler of the Province of Pennsylvania. He married Catharine Ann Marsh on May 5, 1835. They had one son and two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arndt, Charles C.P. Politicians from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Politicians from Green Bay, Wisconsin Assassinated American politicians Rutgers University alumni Pennsylvania lawyers Wisconsin lawyers Wisconsin Whigs Members of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature 19th-century American legislators 1811 births 1842 deaths People murdered in Wisconsin Deaths by firearm in Wisconsin 19th-century American lawyers Politicians assassinated in the 1840s 19th-century Wisconsin politicians

Early life and education

In the legislature

Death

Personal life and family

See also

References