Samuel Buckmaster

Samuel A. Buckmaster (c. 1817-1878) was a prison warden, mayor, and state legislator in Illinois.[1] He served as Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives during the 23rd General Assembly.[2] He served in the Illinois House and Illinois Senate.[3]

Career

He was first elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 1851 and served two terms. He was the mayor of Alton, Illinois from 1853 to 1854.[1] He was a member of the Illinois Senate from 1859 to 1862. He returned to the House in 1863 during which he was selected as speaker and presided over a politically fraught session in the height of the American Civil War. He served a single term later in the 1870s. He ran unsuccessfully for the Illinois Senate in the 1878 general election.

An act was passed to lease the state penitentiary (Illinois State Prison) to him.[4][5]

Governor Richard Yates wrote to him in opposition of a redistricting plan.[6]

In 1877 James Shaw was elected Speaker of the House over Buckmaster.[7]

Personal life

Buckmaster was born in Virginia in 1817.

Nathaniel Buckmaster, who also served as a state legislator and warden of the state penitentiary, was his uncle.[citation needed]

He bred cattle.[8]

The Colonel Samuel Buckmaster House at 514 State Street in Alton, Illinois 1835? is listed on National Register of Historic Places as part of the Christian Hill Historic District.[9]

He died November 13, 1878.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society. Illinois State Historical Society. 1913.
  2. ^ Reports to the General Assembly of Illinois at Its ... Regular Session. State Printers. 1859.
  3. ^ Centennial History of Madison County, Illinois, and Its People, 1812 to 1912. Bell & Howell Company. 1912.
  4. ^ A Compilation of the Statutes of the State of Illinois: Of a General Nature, in Force January 1, 1856. Keen & Lee. 1856.
  5. ^ Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics of Illinois. Office of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 1886.
  6. ^ "Richard Yates to Samuel A. Buckmaster". Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. June 2, 1863.
  7. ^ Illinois, Historical and Statistical: Comprising the Essential Facts of Its Planting and Growth as a Province, County, Territory, and State. Fergus Printing. 1892.
  8. ^ Transactions of the Department of Agriculture of the State of Illinois with Reports from County Agricultural Societies for the Year. Illinois state journal Company, state printers. 1876.
  9. ^ Wagner, Robert (July 25, 1977). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: Christian Hill Historic District" (PDF). National Park Service. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  10. ^ Redmond, Mary (1980). Mr. Speaker: Presiding Officers of the Illinois House of Representatives 1818-1980. Office of the Speaker of the House. pp. 39–40. Retrieved September 8, 2022.