Joel Aldrich Matteson

Joel Aldrich Matteson (August 8, 1808 – January 31, 1873) was the tenth Governor of Illinois, serving from 1853 to 1857.[2]

Joel Aldrich Matteson
10th Governor of Illinois
In office
January 10, 1853 – January 12, 1857
LieutenantGustav Koerner
Preceded byAugustus C. French
Succeeded byWilliam Henry Bissell
Personal details
Born(1808-08-08)August 8, 1808
Watertown, New York
DiedJanuary 31, 1873(1873-01-31) (aged 64)
Chicago, Illinois
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseMary Fish
RelativesRoswell Eaton Goodell (son-in-law)[1]
Mary Goodell Grant (granddaughter)[1]
ProfessionPolitician
Signature

In 1855, he became the first governor to reside in the Illinois Executive Mansion. In January 1855, during the joint legislative session of the Illinois House and Senate convened to choose a US senator, he became a surprise candidate. On the 9th ballot, he received 47 votes, 3 short of the 50 needed to win. Abraham Lincoln, who was also a contestant, then asked his supporters to vote for Lyman Trumbull, who won on the 10th ballot.[3][4]

After his term as governor ended he was for many years the president of the Chicago and Alton Railroad.[5]

The last years of his life were marred by charges of corruption in the Canal Scrip Fraud case. The village of Matteson, Illinois is named in his honor.[6] Matteson was buried in Joliet, Illinois.

References
  1. Cannon, Helen (Winter 1964). "First Ladies of Colorado Mary Goodell Grant" (PDF). Colorado Magazine. 4 (1). Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  2. Mardos Rietsch, Pam (2006). "Chapter Twenty-Two of the History of Southern Illinois" [P. 246 Governor Joel A. Matteson]. Mardos Memorial Library. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  3. Journal of the House of Representatives of the Nineteenth Assembly of the State of Illinois. Springfield: Lamphier & Walker. 1855.
  4. Journal of the Senate of the Nineteenth Assembly of the State of Illinois. Springfield: Lamphier & Walker. 1855.
  5. "Illinois governors in trouble, A history of corruption at the top" by Erika Holst, Illinois Times, Thursday, February 26, 2015.
  6. Illinois Central Magazine. Illinois Central Railroad Company. 1922. p. 45.

This article incorporates facts obtained from: Lawrence Kestenbaum, The Political Graveyard


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