Gideon Tomlinson (December 31, 1780 – October 8, 1854) was a

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 ...

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 ...

, and the 25th Governor for the state of

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 ...

Biography

Born in Stratford, Tomlinson completed preparatory studies and 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 1802. He went to Virginia for a year to be a private tutor and to study law. When he returned to Fairfield he continued his studies and was admitted to the bar in 1807. That same year he married Sarah Bradley. He received a Master of Arts, in 1808 from

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

. Their only child, Jabez Huntington Tomlinson, was born in 1818 but died at the young age of 19 in 1838. Mrs. Tomlinson died in 1842. In 1846, Gideon married Mrs. Lydia Ann Wells Wright, widow of William Wright of Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Career

Tomlinson entered politics in 1817, as clerk of the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an equal number of districts, with ...

, and was reelected again in 1818, when he served as speaker. He was Delegate to the State Constitutional Convention in 1818. Elected to the Sixteenth and to the three succeeding United States Congresses, Tomlinson served as a Representative from March 4, 1819 to March 3, 1827, and was chairman of the Committee on Commerce (Nineteenth Congress). Winning the 1827 gubernatorial nomination, Tomlinson was elected Connecticut's eighth governor. He was reelected to the governor's office in

1828 Events January–March * January 4 – Jean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac succeeds the Comte de Villèle, as Prime Minister of France. * January 8 – The Democratic Party of the United States is organized. * January 22 – Arth ...

1829 Events January–March * January 19 – August Klingemann's adaptation of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's '' Faust'' premieres in Braunschweig. * February 27 – Battle of Tarqui: Troops of Gran Colombia and Peru battle to a draw. * Marc ...

, and 1830. During his tenure, prison reform was accomplished in 1827 with the opening of a more civilized penitentiary. His administration advocated educational improvements and fiscal support to the public school system. On March 2, 1831, Tomlinson resigned from office to accept an appointment to the U.S. Senate. Tomlinson served in the United States Senate and served from March 4, 1831, to March 3, 1837. There, he served as chairman of the Committee on Pensions (Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Congresses). In 1837, he left the Senate and became the first President of the newly chartered Housatonic Railroad Company. He was a trustee of Trinity College, then retired to private life.

Death and legacy

Tomlinson died in Fairfield on October 8, 1854. He is interred at the Old Congregational Cemetery, Stratford, Connecticut. The Tomlinson Bridge (built 1796-98) of Fair Haven (part of New Haven)

is named after him. The Tomlinson Middle School in Fairfield is named in his honor.

References

External links

*
Connecticut State Library
*
Govtrack US Congress

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomlinson, Gideon 1780 births 1854 deaths People from Stratford, Connecticut Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut Toleration Party politicians National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut National Republican Party United States senators from Connecticut Governors of Connecticut National Republican Party state governors of the United States Connecticut Whigs Members of the Connecticut House of Representatives Lawyers from Fairfield, Connecticut 19th-century American lawyers Yale College alumni