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Samuel Bigger
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| In office December 5, 1834 – December 4, 1835 |
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Indiana Circuit Court Judge
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| In office 1835 – 1840 |
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Seventh Governor of Indiana
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| In office December 5, 1840 – December 4, 1843 |
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| Lieutenant | Samuel Hall |
| Preceded by | David Wallace |
| Succeeded by | James Whitcomb |
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| Born | March 20, 1802 Franklin, Ohio |
| Died | September 9, 1845 Fort Wayne, Indiana |
| Political party | Whig Party |
| Religion | Presbyterian |
Samuel Bigger (March 20, 1802 – September 9, 1845) was a Whig governor of the U.S. state of Indiana from December 9, 1840 to December 6, 1843.
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Biography
Early life
He was born in Franklin, Ohio, the son of John Bigger, the Ohio House of Representatives Speaker of the House. Because of his father he regularly encountered many of the leading men of the frontier.[1] He attended a log cabin school in Ohio. As a boy Bigger enjoyed reading books. At age 18 he contracted a severe cold from which he nearly died. Because of the sickness he became constantly in poor health and his father decided he was unfit for manual labor on the farm and sent him to school where he could learn a profession. Bigger was enrolled as a student at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio in the 1820s where he studied law.[2] On graduation he received both A.B. and A.M. degrees.citation needed
Bigger moved to Liberty, Indiana in 1829 after completing school and began to practice law. He lived only a short time in Liberty before moving to Rushville where he began his public career.[3] He was partnered in his law office with Oliver H. Smith for a period of time, and later with James Whitcomb and Joseph A. Wright.[4]
Public Life
In 1834 Bigger was elected to the Indiana House of Representatives. He served one term until 1835. The same year he was appointed as a judge on the Indiana Circuit Court where he served until his election as governor.[5]
In 1840 he was nominated to become the Whig Party candidate for Governor. He defeated Tilghman Howard and became governor. He won by over 8,000 votes.[6] In 1841, at the request of the state legislature, Bigger completely rewrote the states code of laws. He was well qualified for the job with his background as a lawyer. His new code of laws was passed almost immediately and overwhelming by the legislature in 1842.[7]
His governorship was consumed with by the state's $13 million debt, which had been created a decade earlier. The state had reached the point where it could not even pay the interest on the debt, and bankruptcy was near. His administration focused on curtailing government spending in a vain attempt to pay down the debt.[8]
He failed to be reelected in 1843 and was defeated by James Whitcomb. Bigger, a Presbyterian, unintentionally insulted the Methodist Church, to which Whitcomb belonged during the debate on establishing Asbury University. Bigger said that the Methodist Church did not require educated preachers, but rather uneducated better suited it's members. The church then campaigned heavily against him, led mainly by Bishop Ames. Ames is quoted to have said "It is with the amen corner of the Methodist Church that defeated Governor Bigger, and I had a hand in that".[9]
Return to Private Life
After losing his bid for reelection Bigger moved to Fort Wayne where he resumed the practice of law. He died on September 9, 1845 in Fort Wayne, aged 43, and was buried in that city's McCulloch Park.[10]
Memorials
- The U.S. 27 (Lafayette Street) bridge over the St. Mary's River in downtown Fort Wayne was renamed the Governor Samuel Bigger Memorial Bridge by a Resolution of the Indiana General Assembly authored by State Representative Mitchell Harper.
References
- ^ Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana, By William Wesley Woollen, Pg 79
- ^ Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana, By William Wesley Woollen, Pg 77
- ^ Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana, By William Wesley Woollen, Pg 77
- ^ Memoirs of the Miami Valley, By John Calvin Hover, Pg 315
- ^ Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana, By William Wesley Woollen, Pg 78
- ^ Memoirs of the Miami Valley, By John Calvin Hover, Pg 315
- ^ Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana, By William Wesley Woollen, Pg 78
- ^ Jacob Piatt Dunn (1919). Indiana and Indianans. American Historical Society, 726.
- ^ Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana, By William Wesley Woollen, Pg 80
- ^ Memoirs of the Miami Valley, By John Calvin Hover, Pg 315
External links
- Biography and Portrait from Indiana State Library
- Profile from County History.com
- Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana, By William Wesley Woollen
- Memoirs of the Miami Valley, By John Calvin Hover
| Preceded by David Wallace |
Governor of Indiana December 9, 1840 – December 6, 1843 |
Succeeded by James Whitcomb |
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