Gov. John Samuel Peters

About

JOHN SAMUEL PETERS was born in Hebron, Connecticut, on September 21, 1772. He attended Hebron’s public schools, and in 1792, became interested in the study of medicine. Peters accomplished his medical studies four years later, and entered into a practice in Hebron. In 1807 he served as a surgeon in the state militia. Peters entered politics in 1810, when he was elected to serve in the Connecticut House of Representatives. He was reelected in 1816 and again in 1817, when he served as clerk. He served again in the House from 1824 to 1826. He also served in the Connecticut State Senate from 1818 to 1823, was a member of the 1818 State Constitutional Convention, and was lieutenant governor of Connecticut in 1827. Peters assumed the duties of governor in March 1831, when Governor Tomlinson resigned from office. He was nominated and elected governor of Connecticut later that same month, and was reelected to a second term in 1832. During his tenure, the state’s first railroads were authorized and private enterprise was promoted. Peters’s administration also advocated internal and educational improvements, but he was unsuccessful in securing the appropriate funding. He was also unsuccessful in his 1833 reelection bid and left office, retiring from public service.  He later became president of the State Medical Society, and was vice president of the Connecticut Historical Society. Governor John S. Peters died on March 30, 1858, and he is buried at the St. Peter’s Episcopal Cemetery, Hebron, Connecticut.

Source

Sobel, Robert, and John Raimo, eds. Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. 1, Westport, Conn.; Meckler Books, 1978. 4 vols.

Town of Hebron Connecticut History

The Political Graveyard