Representative Ebenezer Jackson

Ebenezer Jackson Jr. (January 31, 1796 – August 17, 1874) was a U.S. Representative from Connecticut and a lawyer whose career spanned both state and national public service during the early nineteenth century. He was born in Savannah, Georgia, where he pursued early academic studies before leaving the South to further his education in the Mid-Atlantic region.

Jackson attended St. Mary’s College, near Baltimore, Maryland—an institution later known as Mount St. Mary’s—and was graduated in 1814. Following his collegiate studies, he turned to the law, enrolling at the Litchfield Law School in Connecticut, one of the leading legal training institutions in the United States at the time. His education at Litchfield placed him within a prominent network of early American lawyers and public officials and prepared him for admission to the bar.

After completing his legal studies, Jackson was admitted to the bar and commenced the practice of law in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1821. He remained in Philadelphia for several years, building his professional experience in a major commercial and legal center of the young republic. In 1826 he moved to Middletown, Connecticut, a relocation that would shape the remainder of his professional and political life. In Middletown he continued his legal practice and became increasingly involved in local and state affairs.

Jackson entered public office as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives, serving in that body from 1829 to 1832. His legislative service coincided with a period of significant political realignment in the United States, as debates over federal power, internal improvements, and the policies of President Andrew Jackson reshaped party affiliations. Within Connecticut, Jackson emerged as part of the Anti-Jacksonian opposition, aligning himself with those who resisted the policies of the Jackson administration.

In national politics, Jackson was elected as an Anti-Jacksonian candidate to the Twenty-third Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Representative Samuel A. Foote. He represented Connecticut in the U.S. House of Representatives from December 1, 1834, to March 3, 1835. His brief tenure in Congress placed him within the broader Anti-Jacksonian, or National Republican, movement that would soon contribute to the formation of the Whig Party. Jackson sought to continue his service in the national legislature but was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1834 to the Twenty-fourth Congress.

After his service in Congress, Jackson returned to Connecticut state politics and his legal practice in Middletown. He was again elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives in 1849, demonstrating his continued engagement in public affairs and the confidence placed in him by his community. His later years were spent in Middletown, where he remained a respected figure in local civic and professional circles.

Ebenezer Jackson Jr. died in Middletown, Connecticut, on August 17, 1874. He was interred in Indian Hill Cemetery in Middletown, where his burial marked the close of a life that bridged regional boundaries from the South to New England and encompassed service at both the state and national levels during a formative era in American political history.