"Massachusetts Congressman" Alexander De Witt Hand Written Note Todd Mueller COA

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"Massachusetts Congressman" Alexander De Witt Hand Written Note Dated 1854.
This item is certified authentic by Todd Mueller Autographs and comes with their Certificate of Authenticity.
ES-4808E
Alexander De Witt
(April 2, 1798 – January 13, 1879) was a 19th-century
American politician
from the state of
Massachusetts
. Born in
New Braintree, Massachusetts
, De Witt worked in textile manufacturing in
Oxford, Massachusetts
. Active in politics as a
Democrat
, he was elected to the
Massachusetts House of Representatives
in 1830, serving until 1836. He served in the
Massachusetts State Senate
in 1842, 1844, 1850, and 1851.
[
An anti-slavery activist, De Witt later joined the
Free Soil Party
. As a Free Soiler he was elected to the
United States Congress in 1853
. In January 1854, he was one of six signatories of the "Appeal of the Independent Democrats", drafted to oppose the Kansas-Nebraska Act. After the demise of the Free Soil Party, De Witt joined the
American Party
, then the only major party with an anti-slavery platform. He won a second term in 1854, and served in the
34th Congress
.
[
He was defeated in his 1856 bid for reelection and returned to his previous work as a textile manufacturer. De Witt later became a
Republican
, and supported the
Union
during the
American Civil War
by participating in efforts to recruit and equip soldiers for Massachusetts regiments. De Witt died in Oxford on January 13, 1879. He is buried in Oxford's South Cemetery.