Josiah Mason Carter (June 19, 1813 – March 21, 1868) was a Whig member of the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an ...

representing

Norwalk, Connecticut , image_map = Fairfield County Connecticut incorporated and unincorporated areas Norwalk highlighted.svg , mapsize = 230px , map_caption = Location in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Fairfield County and ...

in 1857 and 1861 to 1862. He served as

speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

of the Connecticut House in 1862.

Early life and family

Cater was born in New Canaan on June 19, 1813. He graduated at

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 the year of 1836. He studied law with Thomas B. Osborne in Fairfield, and was admitted to the Fairfield County bar in August 1839. He practiced law in New York City in 1841. He was married the same year. In 1847, he moved to Norwalk, and formed a law partnership with

Thomas B. Butler Thomas Belden Butler (August 22, 1806 – June 8, 1873) was a Whig politician from Connecticut. He was Chief Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court from 1870 to 1873. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Connect ...

, who was later appointed to the

Connecticut Supreme Court The Connecticut Supreme Court, formerly known as the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors, is the supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It consists of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices. The seven justices sit in ...

. He continued in the partnership until 1855. He was a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives in the years 1850, 1861 and 1862, and the last year was Speaker of the House. He was the candidate of the Whig Party for the office of Lieutenant Governor in 1856. He was appointed State Attorney for Fairfield County in 1862 and held the office until his death. On two occasions he declined to be a candidate for a judgeship in the Superior Court, when it was urged upon him by his political friends then in power. He died in Norwalk on March 21, 1868.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Josiah Mason 1813 births 1868 deaths Republican Party members of the Connecticut House of Representatives Connecticut lawyers Politicians from Norwalk, Connecticut Speakers of the Connecticut House of Representatives Yale College alumni 19th-century American legislators 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century Connecticut politicians