John S. Horner
Encyclopedia
John Scott Horner also known as Little Jack Horner (December 5, 1802 - February 3, 1883) was a U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician, Secretary and acting Governor of Michigan Territory
Michigan Territory
The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan...
, 1835–1836 and Secretary of Wisconsin Territory, 1836-1837.
Early life
He was born in what is now Warrenton, VirginiaWarrenton, Virginia
Warrenton is a town in Fauquier County, Virginia, United States. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census, and 14,634 at the 2010 estimate. It is the county seat of Fauquier County. Public schools in the town include Fauquier High School, Warrenton Middle School, Taylor Middle School and two...
, the third child of eight. He attended a private boarding school near Middleburg, Virginia
Middleburg, Virginia
Middleburg is a town in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States with a population of approximately 976 as of July 2010.-History:The town was established in 1787 by American Revolutionary War Lieutenant Colonel and Virginia statesman, Levin Powell. He purchased the land for Middleburg at $2.50 per...
run by a Scottish Presbyterian
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
clergyman. He attended Washington College (now known as Washington and Jefferson College) in Washington County, Pennsylvania
Washington County, Pennsylvania
-Government and politics:As of November 2008, there are 152,534 registered voters in Washington County .* Democratic: 89,027 * Republican: 49,025 * Other Parties: 14,482...
, graduating in 1819. He then studied law, was admitted to the bar in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and maintained a successful private practice in Fauquier
Fauquier County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 55,139 people, 19,842 households, and 15,139 families residing in the county. The population density was 85 people per square mile . There were 21,046 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...
, Loudoun
Loudoun County, Virginia
Loudoun County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and is part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the county is estimated to be home to 312,311 people, an 84 percent increase over the 2000 figure of 169,599. That increase makes the county the fourth...
, and Rappahannock
Rappahannock County, Virginia
As of the census of 2010, there were 7,373 people, 2,788 households, and 2,004 families residing in the county. The population density was 26 people per square mile . There were 3,303 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...
counties. In October, 1834, Horner married Harriet L. Watson, the daughter of James Watson
James Watson (politician)
James Watson was a United States Senator representing the state of New York.-Life:Watson moved to New York City in 1786 and engaged in business pursuits. He was a member of the New York State Assembly in 1791, 1794–1796 and was Speaker in 1794...
, U.S. Senator from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
Political career
On August 15, 1835, President Andrew JacksonAndrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
appointed Horner to be Secretary (and acting Governor) of the Michigan Territory
Michigan Territory
The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan...
, replacing the popular Stevens T. Mason
Stevens T. Mason
Stevens Thomson Mason , also known as Stevens T. Mason, Tom Mason, The Boy Governor, and lesser known nicknames Young Hotspur and The Stripling, was the territorial governor of the Michigan Territory, and later the first Governor of the state of Michigan. Mason guided the Michigan Territory into...
. Whether he knew it or not, Horner was entering office in a volatile situation.
Michigan had satisfied all the requirements set out in the Northwest Ordinance
Northwest Ordinance
The Northwest Ordinance was an act of the Congress of the Confederation of the United States, passed July 13, 1787...
to become a state, however the U.S. Congress had repeatedly rejected or ignored Michigan's petition for statehood. The rejection was related to two very contentious issues:
- There was an acrimonious border dispute with the state of OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, which became known as the Toledo WarToledo WarThe Toledo War , also known as the Michigan-Ohio War, was the almost entirely bloodless boundary dispute between the U.S. state of Ohio and the adjoining territory of Michigan....
. - Southern slave stateSlave stateIn the United States of America prior to the American Civil War, a slave state was a U.S. state in which slavery was legal, whereas a free state was one in which slavery was either prohibited from its entry into the Union or eliminated over time...
s were reluctant to increase the number of northern free states.
Jackson, facing reelection in 1836, did not want to alienate Ohio, with its many electoral votes. So he removed the popular Mason from office. Mason was agitating for statehood and was, at that time, unyielding in demands regarding the Toledo Strip. At Mason's urging, Michigan had drafted a constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
on its own without the sanction of an Enabling Act from Congress. The people adopted the constitution in October 1835 and at the same time elected Mason as governor along with a full slate of state officials (the state government was not recognized by Congress until 1837, when Michigan became a state).
So Horner had to appease irate Ohioans as well as deal with an unauthorized, but popular local government that undermined his own authority as Territorial Governor. Horner was at least partially successful, in that he helped to avert violence (aside from some minor scuffles) and persuaded both parties to wait for the upcoming session of Congress to propose a resolution. Despite heading alternate governments, there was little disagreement between Mason and Horner, with Horner mostly staying out of the way in local politics.
In August 1835, while Michigan prepared itself for statehood, Mason had separated all of the territory which was not going to be part of the state into a separate jurisdiction in order to provide some continuity in governance. Horner had replaced Mason as Territorial Secretary in the interim and was to assume responsibility for the western territory. But he was delayed for various reasons and the western area had its own government for a time without any official representative of the federal government. Congress organized the Wisconsin Territory on July 3, 1836 and Horner assumed the office of Secretary, leaving the de facto, if unrecognized, government of the state of Michigan to Mason.
As Secretary of the Wisconsin Territory, Horner's first acts were to administer the oaths of office to Governor Henry Dodge
Henry Dodge
Henry Dodge was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, Territorial Governor of Wisconsin and a veteran of the Black Hawk War. His son was Augustus C. Dodge with whom he served in the U.S. Senate, the first, and so far only, father-son pair to serve concurrently....
and the judges of the supreme court with Charles Dunn
Charles Dunn
Charles Dunn was a United States jurist and politician.Born in Bullitt's Lick, Bullitt County, Kentucky, Dunn was educated in Kentucky and Illinois. Dunn read law under Nathaniel Pope in Illinois and was admitted to the Illinois bar. During the Black Hawk War of 1832, Dunn served in the Illinois...
as chief justice, and William C. Frazer
William C. Frazer
William Clark Frazer was an United States territorial judge.Born in New Castle, Delaware, he studied law in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Frazer gave a eulogy in the Masonic Lodge, in Lancaster, on the death of George Washington in 1799. In 1836, Frazer was appointed to the Wisconsin Territorial...
and David Irvin
David Irvin (jurist)
David Irvin was a United States territorial judge.Born in Albemarle County, Virginia, Irvin practiced law in Virginia. He was appointed a federal judge in Michigan Territory. When Wisconsin Territory was created, Irvin was appointed one of the justices of the Wisconsin Territorial Supreme Court...
as associate justices.
In June 1837, Jackson transferred Horner to the become Register of the Green Bay
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
Land Office. Horner resisted requests by friends and relatives to move back east to Virginia, and in 1847, Horner moved to a farm on the south shore of Green Lake in present day Green Lake County
Green Lake County, Wisconsin
Green Lake County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 19,105. Its county seat is Green Lake. The center of population of Wisconsin is located in Green Lake County in the city of Markesan.-Geography:...
. In 1849, he was elected probate judge for Marquette County
Marquette County, Wisconsin
Marquette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 15,832. Its county seat is Montello.-Geography:...
(which then included Green Lake County). He held this office until the court was abolished in 1854.
Later life
John Horner was one of the original settlers of the present day city of Ripon, WisconsinRipon, Wisconsin
Ripon is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 6,828. The City of Ripon's official website claims the city's current population to be 7,701. The city is surrounded by the Town of Ripon....
. In 1851, John Horner also helped established Ripon College
Ripon College (Wisconsin)
Ripon College is a liberal arts college in Ripon, Wisconsin, USA. It offers small class sizes and intensive mentoring to students. Ripon has a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa--one of the nation's most prestigious honor societies. Alumni have high rates of success in the workforce as well as acceptance...
. He died in Ripon, at the age of eighty years.