The Wyandotte Convention: an addressMartin, John Alexander
History
The Wyandotte Convention: an address
Martin, John Alexander
Kansas -- Politics and government -- 1854-1861; Kansas Territory. Constitutional Convention (1859)
Very few were old men. Only fifteen of the fifty-two members were over
forty. Over one-third were under thirty, and nearly two-thirds under
thirty-five. Very few, as I have said, had previously appeared as
representatives of the people in any Territorial assemblage, and this
was especially true of the men whose talents, industry and force soon
approved them leaders. Samuel A. Kingman had been in the Territory only
about eighteen months, and was unknown, outside of Brown county, until
he appeared at Wyandotte. Solon O. Thacher was a young lawyer of
Lawrence, never before prominent in public affairs. John J. Ingalls had
served, the previous winter, as Engrossing Clerk of the Territorial
Council. Samuel A. Stinson was a young attorney, recently from Maine.
William C. McDowell had never been heard of outside of Leavenworth,
Benjamin F. Simpson was a boyish-looking lawyer from Miami county, and
John T. Burris had been practicing, for a year or two, before Justices'
courts in Johnson county. John P. Slough had been a member of the Ohio
Legislature, but was a new comer in Kansas; and E. G. Ross was the
publisher of a weekly newspaper at Topeka.
One-half of the members had been in the Territory less than two years.
Six came in 1854, four in 1855, and twelve in 1856, while Mr. Forman, of
Doniphan, dated his residence from 1843; Mr. Palmer, of Pottawatomie,
from 1854, and Mr. Houston, of Riley, from 1853. Forty-one were from
Northern States, seven from the South, and four were of foreign birth,
England, Scotland, Ireland, and Germany each contributing one. It
appears singular that only one of the Western States, Indiana, was
represented in the membership, that State furnishing six delegates.
Twelve hailed from New England, Ohio contributed twelve, Pennsylvania
six, and New York four. Only eighteen belonged to the legal
profession—an unusually small number of lawyers in such a body. Sixteen
were farmers, eight merchants, three physicians, three manufacturers,
one a mechanic, one a printer, one a land agent, and one a surveyor. The
oldest member was Robert Graham, of Atchison, who was 55; the youngest,
Benj. F. Simpson, of Lykins Co., (now Miami,) who was 23.
A WORKING BODY.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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