Reuben Wood
| Reuben Wood | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 21st Governor of Ohio | |
|
In office December 12, 1850 – July 13, 1853 | |
| Lieutenant |
Vacant William Medill |
| Preceded by | Seabury Ford |
| Succeeded by | William Medill |
| Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court | |
|
In office February 6, 1833 – February, 1847 | |
| Preceded by | Peter Hitchcock |
| Succeeded by | Edward Avery |
| Member of the Ohio Senate from the Cuyahoga & other counties district | |
|
In office December 5, 1825 – December 5, 1830 | |
| Preceded by |
Jabez Wright Samuel Wheeler Aaron Norton |
| Succeeded by | John W. Willey |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
November 21, 1793 Middletown Springs, Vermont |
| Died |
October 1, 1864 Cleveland, Ohio |
| Resting place | Woodland Cemetery, Cleveland |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Rice |
| Children |
Loretta Wood Mary Wood |
| Signature |
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Reuben Wood (November 21, 1793 – October 1, 1864) was a Democratic politician from the U.S. state of Ohio. He served as the 21st Governor of Ohio.
Biography
Wood was born near Middletown, Rutland County, Vermont. While living with an uncle in Canada after his father died, Wood was conscripted into the Canadian Army at the outset of the War of 1812, but escaped across Lake Ontario and briefly served in the U.S. Army.[1]
Career
Wood moved to Cleveland, Ohio – then a tiny village of 600 residents – in 1818 with his wife and infant daughter. He reputedly arrived with only $1.25 left to his name to work as a lawyer. He served in the Ohio State Senate from 1825 to 1830. In 1830, he was elected President Judge of the third judicial circuit.[2][3] He served on the Common Pleas Court bench from 1830 to 1833.[1]
Wood was elected in 1833 to the Ohio Supreme Court, and served two seven-year terms from 1833 to 1847.[4] He was defeated in a bid for a third term by a Whig candidate. He took office in late 1850 as governor. His first term was cut short by the implementation of a new state constitution, and he was re-elected in late 1851, re-inaugurated in early 1852. He resigned on July 13, 1853 to take a position as the American consul in Valparaíso, Chile. He remained there until 1855, when he retired to Cleveland.
Wood married Mary Rice, of Clarendon, Vermont in 1816 or 1817. They had two daughters.[3]
Wood was known as The tall chief of the Cuyahogas,[5] or Cuyahoga Chief,[2] or Old Cuyahoga Chief,[6] or Old Chief of the Cuyahogas.[3]
Death
Wood died at his farm, Evergreen Place, eight miles west of Cleveland, on Saturday, October 1, 1864 at age 70, from bilious colic.[6] He was initially interred on the farm, and was later reburied at Woodland Cemetery in Cleveland.[3]
References
- 1 2 "REUBEN WOOD". The Ohio Historical Society. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
- 1 2 Rice, Harvey (May–October 1885). "Western Reserve Jurists". In Williams, William W. Magazine of Western History. 2. Cleveland. p. 203.
- 1 2 3 4 "Reuben Wood". The Supreme Court of Ohio and The Ohio Judicial System.
- ↑ "Ohio Governor Reuben Wood". National Governors Association. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
- ↑ Upton, Harriet Taylor (1910). Cutler, Harry Gardner, ed. History of the Western Reserve. 1. New York: The Lewis Publishing Company. p. 521.
- 1 2 Cleave, Egbert (1875). City of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County: taken from Cleave's Biographical Cyclopaedie of the state of Ohio. Cleveland: Fairbanks, Benedict & Co. pp. 35–36.
External links
- "Ohio Governor Reuben Wood". National Governors Association.
- Reuben Wood at Find a Grave
"Wood, Reuben". Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography. 1900.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Seabury Ford |
Governor of Ohio 1850–1853 |
Succeeded by William Medill |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by Peter Hitchcock |
Ohio Supreme Court Judges 1833-1847 |
Succeeded by Edward Avery |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by John B. Weller |
Democratic Party nominee for Governor of Ohio 1850, 1851 |
Succeeded by William Medill |
