Jefferson P. Kidder
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Jefferson Parish Kidder (June 4, 1815 – October 2, 1883) was an American lawyer and jurist. He served as the non-voting delegate from the Dakota Territory to the United States House of Representatives. Kidder was the only Democratic lieutenant governor of Vermont until John J. Daley in 1965.
Early life
Kidder was born in Braintree, Vermont on June 4, 1815. He attended the Orange County Grammar School in Randolph, and graduated from Alden Partridge's American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy (Norwich University) in 1834.<ref>Norwich University, 1819-1911; Her History, Her Graduates, Her Roll of Honor, Volume 2, 1911, page 682</ref> He studied law in Montpelier, was admitted to the bar in 1839 and practiced in Braintree and West Randolph. Among the prospective attorneys who studied law under Kidder's supervision were John W. Rowell, who went on to serve as chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and Carl C. Pope, a legislator and judge in Wisconsin.<ref name="Biographical">Template:Cite book</ref>
Career
He was a member of the Vermont Constitutional Convention in 1843. He served as State's Attorney for Orange County (1842-1847), a member of the Vermont State Senate (1847-1849), the Lieutenant Governor of Vermont (1852-1853), and a delegate to the 1856 Democratic National Convention.
In 1848 he received the honorary degree of Master of Arts from the University of Vermont.
In 1857 Kidder moved to St. Paul, Minnesota, where he joined the Republican Party.
In 1859, Kidder moved to Dakota Territory and became a delegate to Congress from the provisional government at Sioux Falls.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>
In 1862 and 1863, he was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives. In 1865 he moved to Vermillion, Dakota Territory, when Abraham Lincoln appointed him an associate justice of the territorial Supreme Court.<ref name=":0" />
In 1874, he was elected as the territory's delegate to Congress. He served from March 4, 1875 to March 3, 1879 and was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1878.
1879, Kidder was reappointed to the Supreme Court of Dakota Territory. He served until his death in 1883.<ref name=":0" />
Death and burial
Kidder died in St. Paul on October 2, 1883.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was buried in St. Paul's Oakland Cemetery.
Family
His son Lyman S. Kidder was a U.S. Cavalry 2nd lieutenant serving in the 2nd Cavalry under George Armstrong Custer, and was killed in action in what would be dubbed the Kidder massacre.
Jefferson Kidder was also the grandfather of noted lawman and Arizona Ranger Jeff Kidder.
Legacy
Kidder County, North Dakota is named for him.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
References
External links
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- 1815 births
- 1883 deaths
- People from Braintree, Vermont
- Norwich University alumni
- Vermont lawyers
- Vermont Democrats
- State's attorneys in Vermont
- Vermont state senators
- Lieutenant governors of Vermont
- Minnesota Republicans
- Minnesota lawyers
- Members of the Minnesota House of Representatives
- South Dakota Republicans
- South Dakota lawyers
- Justices of the Dakota Territorial Supreme Court
- Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from Dakota Territory
- People from Vermillion, South Dakota
- 19th-century American lawyers
- 19th-century United States representatives
- 19th-century members of the Vermont General Assembly
- 19th-century members of the Minnesota Legislature