Gov. Josiah Bartlett

About

JOSIAH BARTLETT, the sixth governor of New Hampshire, was born in Amesbury, Massachusetts on November 21, 1729. His education was attained in the public schools, where he studied medicine. He eventually established a successful medical practice in Kingston, New Hampshire. Bartlett first entered politics as a member of the New Hampshire legislature, a position he held from 1765 to 1775. He was a member of the Continental Congress in 1775, 1776, and 1778, served as a common pleas court judge in 1778, and was the second signer of the Declaration of Independence, as well as a signer of the Articles of Confederation. Bartlett also was a New Hampshire supreme court justice from 1782 to 1790, serving as chief justice in 1789. He was a delegate to the 1788 state convention that ratified the federal constitution, and that same year he declined a seat in the U.S. senate. Bartlett was elected governor in 1790, and was reelected annually until 1793. During his tenure, the state worked to regain its economic stability; and amendments to the state constitution were sanctioned in 1792, one of which changed the chief executive title from president to governor. Also, the New Hampshire Medical Society was established, with Bartlett serving as it’s first president. After leaving the governorship, Bartlett retired from political life. Governor Josiah Bartlett passed away on May 19, 1795, and was buried in the Plains Cemetery in Kingston, New Hampshire.

Source

Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress

Sobel, Robert, and John Raimo, eds. Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. 3, Westport, Conn.; Meckler Books, 1978. 4 vols.

New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources

Virtual American Biographies