Isaac Fletcher

Isaac Fletcher
Member of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont's 5th district
In office March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1841
Preceded by	Henry Fisk Janes
Succeeded by	John Mattocks
Member of the Vermont House of Representatives
In office 1819–1824
Personal details
Born	November 22, 1784 Dunstable, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	October 19, 1842 (aged 57) Lyndon, Vermont, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Abigail Stone Fletcher[1]
Children	Charles B. Fletcher [2]
Alma mater	Dartmouth College and University of Vermont
Profession	Politician, Lawyer

Isaac Fletcher (November 22, 1784 – October 19, 1842) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a U.S. Representative from Vermont and as Adjutant General on the staff of Governor Cornelius P. Van Ness.

Biography

Fletcher was born in Dunstable, Massachusetts^[3] to Joseph Fletcher and Molly Cummings Fletcher.^[4] He pursued classical studies, and graduated with honors from Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire in 1808.^[5] He taught in the academy at Chesterfield, New Hampshire, studied law and was admitted to the bar in December 1811. He began the practice of law in Lyndon, Vermont in 1812.

He was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1819 until 1824, and served one term as Speaker in 1824. Fletcher was Caledonia County State's Attorney from 1820 until 1829,^[6] and a member of the state constitutional convention in 1822.^[7]

He was military aide to Richard Skinner (politician), Governor of Vermont. He served as Adjutant General of the State Militia, succeeding Daniel Kellogg.^[8] Fletcher received a master's degree from the University of Vermont in 1823.^[9]

Fletcher served as Adjutant General on the staff of Governor of Vermont Cornelius P. Van Ness from 1824 until 1825.^[10] He was elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth Congresses, serving from March 4, 1837 until March 3, 1841.^[11] While in Congress, he was the Chairman of the Committee on Patents. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1840 to the Twenty-seventh Congress.

Personal life

Fletcher married Abigail Stone on February 4, 1812. They had one son, Charles B. Fletcher.^[12]

Death

Fletcher's health declined rapidly during his final term in Congress, which was attributed by doctors to overwork. He died in Lyndon on October 19, 1842 and is interred at the Lyndon Town Cemetery in Lyndon.^[13]

References

1. "Isaac Fletcher (1784 - 1842)". Ancestry.com. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
2. "Descendants of Robert Fletcher". Ancestry.com. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
3. Nason and Varney (1890). Massachusetts Gazetteer,. Nason and Varney. p. 279.
4. "Isaac Fletcher (1784 - 1842)". Ancestry.com. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
5. Nason, Elias (1877). A history of the town of Dunstable, Massachusetts, from its earliest settlement to the year of Our Lord 1873. A. Mudge. p. 218.
6. "Isaac Fletcher". Find A Grave. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
7. "Fletcher, Isaac (1784-1842)". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
8. Nason, Elias (1877). A history of the town of Dunstable, Massachusetts, from its earliest settlement to the year of Our Lord 1873. A. Mudge. p. 218.
9. The Washington Theological Repertory, and Churchman's Guide, Volume 5; Volume 7. The Washington Theological Repertory, and Churchman's Guide, Volume 5; Volume 7. 1823. p. 125.
10. "FLETCHER, Isaac, (1784 - 1842)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
11. "Rep. Isaac Fletcher". Govtrack.us. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
12. "Descendants of Robert Fletcher". Ancestry.com. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
13. "Isaac Fletcher". Find A Grave. Retrieved November 26, 2012.

Further reading

• "A history of the town of Dunstable, Massachusetts, from its earliest settlement to the year of Our Lord 1873" by Elias Nason and George Bailey Loring, published by A. Mudge, 1877.

External links

• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Govtrack.us
• The Political Graveyard
• Find A Grave