Daniel S. Bacon

Daniel S. Bacon
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives
from the Monroe County district
In office
January 7, 1839 – April 20, 1839
Personal details
Born(1798-12-12)December 12, 1798
DiedMay 18, 1866(1866-05-18) (aged 67)
Political partyWhig
Spouses
  • Eleanor Sophia Page
    (m. 1837; d. 1854)
  • Rhoda Wells Pitts
    (m. 1859)
ChildrenElizabeth Custer

Daniel Stanton Bacon (December 12, 1798 – May 18, 1866) was an American politician and judge. He served as a member of the Michigan House of Representatives. He was the father of Elizabeth Bacon Custer, wife and later widow of General George Armstrong Custer.

Early life

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Daniel S. Bacon was born on December 12, 1798, in Onondaga County, New York.[1] Daniel later moved to Michigan, and settled in Monroe, Michigan.[2]

Career

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In 1822, Bacon taught school on the River Raisin. Bacon engaged in a number of different businesses with his partner, Levi S. Humphrey. One business Bacon engaged in was being a practicing lawyer.[1]

Bacon served as a member of the Michigan Territorial Council representing the 5th district from 1832 to 1835.[1] Bacon was nominated by the Whig Party for the position of lieutenant governor in August 1837.[3] On November 5, 1838, Bacon was elected a member of the Michigan House of Representatives representing the Monroe County district from January 7, 1839, to April 20, 1839.[1] During his term, he was nominated by the Whigs for the position of speaker of the House, but Kinsley S. Bingham was elected over him.[4] Bacon served as a delegate to the 1839 Whig National Convention.[5] For the 1852 presidential election, Bacon served as a Whig nominee for presidential elector.[6]

Bacon served as a probate judge for a number of years. He also served as president of a bank in Monroe, and as director of the Michigan Southern Railroad Company.[2]

Personal life

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Bacon married Eleanor Sophia Page on September 12, 1837 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.[7] Their one surviving child, Elizabeth Bacon, was born on April 8, 1842. She would marry famed General George Armstrong Custer on February 9, 1864.[8] Eleanor died on August 12, 1854.[9][10] Bacon re-married to Rhoda Wells Pitts on February 23, 1859 in Orange, New Jersey.[11]

Death

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Bacon died on May 18, 1866, in Monroe.[2] He was interred at Woodland Cemetery.[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Legislator Details - Daniel S. Bacon". Library of Michigan. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Bingham, Stephen D. (1888). Early History of Michigan: With Biographies of State Officers, Members of Congress, Judges and Legislators. Thorp & Godfrey, state printers – via Internet Archive.
  3. ^ "Whig Nominations". Detroit Free Press. August 5, 1837. p. 2. Retrieved November 20, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Speaker of the House". Detroit Free Press. January 8, 1839. p. 3. Retrieved November 20, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "The Wild Cat Banks-Federal Imposition and Hypocrisy". Detroit Free Press. September 10, 1839. p. 2. Retrieved November 20, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Whig Nominations". The Hillsdale Standard. October 26, 1852. p. 2. Retrieved November 20, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Married". Detroit Free Press. October 5, 1837. p. 2. Retrieved November 20, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Leckie, Shirley A. (December 1, 1994). "Custer, Elizabeth Bacon (1842–1933)". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  9. ^ Davis, Daniel T. (2018). The Most Desperate Acts of Gallantry. Casemate Publishers. ISBN 9781611214123.
  10. ^ a b "Woodland Cemetery" (PDF). Woodland Cemetery. p. 109. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  11. ^ Hatch, Thom (2013). Glorious War. St. Martin's Press. pp. 86–87. ISBN 9781250028518.