Bartlett, Ichabod, 1786-1853

Dates

• Existence: 1786 - 1853

Biography

Ichabod Bartlett was born in Salisbury, NH on July 24, 1786. After graduating from Dartmouth College in 1808, he studied law in the office of Moses Eastman (DC Class of 1794) and later in the office of Parker Noyes (DC Class of 1796), both alumni practicing in Salisbury. In 1811, Bartlett was admitted to the Bar of the Court of Common Pleas and began his own law practice in Durham, NH. In 1813, he was admitted to the Bar of the Supreme Judicial Court at Dover, NH. He took up permanent residence in Portsmouth, NH from 1816 until his death, where he attained a high rank in his profession. He became the clerk of the state Senate in 1817, and a trustee of the short-lived Dartmouth University (founded by the governor and legislature in 1816) in 1818. In 1819, he became a member of the New Hampshire State House of Representatives as a solicitor from Portsmouth, a position to which he was reelected for two successive terms. Bartlett served as Speaker of the House in 1821. He also served three terms in Congress as an Anti-Democrat from 1823 to 1829, during which time he served on the Committee for Naval Affairs. He gained national recognition from his speech against Daniel Webster’s (DC Class of 1801) Greek Resolution in 1824. In 1827, he was chosen President of the New Hampshire Historical Society. Bartlett was nominated, though never elected, for Governor of New Hampshire by the Whigs in 1831 and 1832. He returned to the State House of Representatives from 1830 until 1832 and later in 1851 and 1852. In 1850, he was a member of the convention for revising the New Hampshire state constitution. A few of his more important cases include the Trustees of Dartmouth College v. Woodward (the landmark Dartmouth College Case), the Exeter bank robbery case, and the political libel suit of Upham v. Hill and Barton. Bartlett was also a member of the state militia and never married. Ichabod Bartlett died in Portsmouth, NH on October 9, 1853 at the age of 67.

Ichabod Bartlett was uncle to Samuel Colcord Bartlett (DC Class of 1836), who served as President and Trustee of Dartmouth College from 1877 to 1892.

Found in 11 Collections and/or Records: