Preceded by John Biddle Role American Politician Preceded by Henry Jackson Hunt Party Democratic Party | Alma mater Washington College Succeeded by John R. Williams Name Jonathan Kearsley | |
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Died 1859, Detroit, Michigan, United States Education Washington & Jefferson College, Washington College | ||
Jonathan Kearsley (1786–1859) was an American military officer and politician. He fought in the War of 1812 and was a two-time mayor of Detroit.
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Early life
Jonathan Kearsley was born in Middletown, Pennsylvania on August 20, 1786, and graduated from Washington College in Washington, Pennsylvania (now Washington & Jefferson College) in 1811. He was one of the founders of the Union Literary Society at Washington College. He joined the Army the following year as a First Lieutenant in the Second Artillery Corps, eventually reaching the rank of Major. He fought in several battles during the War of 1812, including the Battle of Stoney Creek, Battle of Crysler's Farm, and the Battle of Chippawa (following the Capture of Fort Erie). In the latter battle, he was wounded, and one of his legs was amputated. The operation was performed incorrectly and he suffered pain for the rest of his life from it.
In 1815, Kearsley married Margaret Hetich. The couple had three children: Edmund Roberts (1816), Rebekah H (1817), and Martha I. (1819); Margaret died in 1821. He later married Rachel Valentine.
Life in Detroit
He held the office of Collector of Revenue Taxes in Virginia from 1817 until 1819, when he moved to Detroit and was appointed Receiver of Public Monies, a title which he held for thirty years. He lived on the corner of Jefferson Avenue and Randolph Street in Detroit.
He served as mayor of Detroit two separate times, first appointed by the council to fill the term of Henry Jackson Hunt in 1826, and then being elected in 1829. He also served on the Board of Trustees of the University of Michigan from 1827 to 1837, and again on its re-organized Board of Regents from 1838 until 1852.
He died in 1859 and is buried in Elmwood Cemetery.
Kearsley Community School District is named after him.