Alexander Pope Field

Alexander Pope Field
21st Attorney General of Louisiana
In office
1872 – August 19, 1876
GovernorP. B. S. Pinchback
William Pitt Kellogg
Preceded bySimeon Belden
Succeeded byWilliam H. Hunt
6th Illinois Secretary of State
In office
1829–1840
Governor
Preceded byGeorge Forquer
Succeeded byStephen A. Douglas
4th Secretary of the Wisconsin Territory
In office
April 23, 1841 – October 30, 1843
Appointed byJohn Tyler
GovernorHenry Dodge
James Duane Doty
Preceded byFrancis J. Dunn
Succeeded byGeorge R. C. Floyd
Personal details
Born
Alexander Pope Field

(1800-11-30)November 30, 1800
Louisville, Kentucky
DiedAugust 19, 1876(1876-08-19) (aged 75)
Louisiana
Political party
Spouses
  • Eliza Worthington Owings
  • (m. 1841; died 1863)
Children
  • Alice Owings (Smith)
  • (b. 1843; died 1940)
  • Alexander Pope Field
  • (b. 1846; died 1868)
  • Julia Eliza (Dutcher)
  • (b. 1849; died 1897)
  • Eugene Field
  • (b. 1852; died 1900)
Parents
  • Abner Field (father)
  • Jane (Pope) Field (mother)
Professionlawyer, politician
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Battles/warsBlack Hawk War

Alexander Pope Field (November 30, 1800 – August 19, 1876) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 21st Attorney General of Louisiana, the 6th Illinois Secretary of State, and the 4th Secretary of the Wisconsin Territory. His party affiliation shifted during his career.

Early life and education

Born on November 30, 1800, in Louisville, Kentucky. He moved to Jonesboro, Illinois, studied law, and was admitted to the Illinois bar. His uncle was judge Nathaniel Pope.

Career

From 1822 until 1828, Field served in the Illinois House of Representatives as a Democrat and supported Andrew Jackson. He later became a Whig.

He served in the United States Army including in the Black Hawk War of 1832 and was brigade inspector. From 1829 until 1840, he served as Illinois Secretary of State.[1]

Field moved to Wisconsin Territory and served as the territory's secretary from 1841 to 1843.[1] He then moved to Saint Louis, Missouri, in 1845.[2]

In 1849, Field moved to New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1864 during the American Civil War, Field was elected to U.S. Congress in the second district of Louisiana,[3] however he was not allowed to take his seat. Field assaulted Hon. William D. Kelley from Pennsylvania with a penknife.[4][5] Maximilian F. Bonzano was also elected to the 38th United States Congress the same year in 1864 for the first district of Louisiana, and Bonzano was also not allowed to take his seat after the assault.[4][6]

Field was elected Louisiana Attorney General serving from 1873 until his death.[7]

Notes

  1. ^ a b History of Crawford and Richland Counties, Wisconsin. Springfield, Ill.: Springfield Publishing Company. 1884. p. 35.
  2. ^ Frank E. Stevens. "Alexander Pope Field". Journal of the Illinois Historical Society, vol. 4, no. 1 (April 1911): 7–37.
  3. ^ "Louisiana News". Vermont Chronicle. 8 October 1864. p. 5. Retrieved 10 January 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b "Men Of Mark". The Times-Picayune. 10 November 1889. p. 11. Retrieved 9 January 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Congressional". Weekly National Intelligencer. 28 January 1864. p. 2. Retrieved 10 January 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Abraham Lincoln papers: From Nathaniel P. Banks to Abraham Lincoln, September 6, 1864" (PDF). Library of Congress. 6 September 1864. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 November 2023.
  7. ^ Dictionary of Louisiana Biography. Louisiana Historical Society.
Political offices
Preceded by Secretary of State of Illinois
1829–1840
Succeeded by
Legal offices
Preceded by Attorney General of Louisiana
1873–1876
Succeeded by