Samuel J. Potter

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Samuel John Potter
United States Senator
from Rhode Island
In office
March 4, 1803 – October 14, 1804
Preceded byTheodore Foster
Succeeded byBenjamin Howland
1st Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island
In office
1800–1803
GovernorArthur Fenner
Preceded byGeorge Brown
Succeeded byPaul Mumford
In office
1790–1799
GovernorArthur Fenner
Preceded byDaniel Owen
Succeeded byGeorge Brown
Personal details
Born(1753-06-29)June 29, 1753
South Kingstown, Rhode Island
DiedOctober 14, 1804(1804-10-14) (aged 51)
Washington, D.C.
Political partyDemocratic-Republican

Samuel John Potter (June 29, 1753 – October 14, 1804) was a United States senator from Rhode Island and was a prominent Country Party anti-Federalist leader.

Early life

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Potter was born in South Kingstown on June 29, 1753.[1] He was one of seven children born to John Potter (1724–1787) and, his second wife, Elizabeth (née Hazard) Potter (1729–1806).[2] Before his parents marriage, his father was married to Mary Hazard, his mother's elder sister.[3]

His paternal grandparents were Ichabod Potter III and Sarah (née Robinson) Gardiner. His maternal grandparents were Mary (née Robinson) Hazard and Stephen Hazard, a Justice of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas.[2]

Career

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Potter completed preparatory studies, studied law, and was admitted to the bar and practiced. He was deputy governor of Rhode Island from 1790 to 1799 (during which time the office was renamed lieutenant Governor) and again from 1800 to 1803. He was also a presidential elector in 1792 and 1796.[1]

Potter was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the U.S. Senate and served from March 4, 1803, until his death in 1804.[1]

Personal life

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On September 10, 1788, Potter married Ann Nancy Segar in South Kingstown.[4] Ann was a daughter of Joseph Segar and Mary (née Taylor) Segar.[5] Together, they were the parents of:[2]

  • Isaac Fenner Potter (1796–1883), who married Sally Ennis in 1839.[2]

Potter died in Washington, D.C., on October 14, 1804. He was interned in the family burial ground, Kingston (formerly Little Rest), Washington County, Rhode Island.[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "POTTER, Samuel John 1753 – 1804". bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d Potter, Charles Edward (1888). Genealogies of the Potter Families and Their Descendants in America to the Present Generation: With Historical and Biographical Sketches. A. Mudge & Son. p. 3. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  3. ^ Robinson, Caroline E. (14 October 2018). The Hazard Family of Rhode Island 1635-1894: Being a Genealogy and History of the Descendants of Thomas Hazard, With Sketches of the Worthies of This Family, and Anecdotes Illustrative of Their Traits and Also of the Times in Which They Lived. Creative Media Partners, LLC. ISBN 978-0-343-09822-3. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  4. ^ Wright, William Earl (1993). Ancestors and Descendants of William Browning Greene and Mary Hoxsie Lewis with Allied Families. Gateway Press. pp. 585, 593. ISBN 978-0-9632060-1-5. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  5. ^ Representative Men and Old Families of Rhode Island: Genealogical Records and Historical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens and of Many of the Old Families ... J.H. Beers & Company. 1908. p. 254. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
[edit]
U.S. Senate
Political offices
Preceded by
Daniel Owen
Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island
1790-1799
Succeeded by
Preceded by Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island
1800-1803
Succeeded by
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 1) from Rhode Island
March 4, 1803 – October 14, 1804
Served alongside: Christopher Ellery
Succeeded by