Representative John Hubler Stover

John Hubler Stover (April 24, 1833 – October 27, 1889) was a U.S. Representative from Missouri, a Union Army officer during the Civil War, and a lawyer and public official in both Pennsylvania and Missouri. He was born in Aaronsburg, Centre County, Pennsylvania, where he spent his early years in a rural community that was then part of the developing central Pennsylvania region.

Stover completed his preparatory studies at Bellefonte Academy in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, an institution that served as a leading local school for advanced study in the mid-nineteenth century. After finishing his preparatory education, he pursued the study of law. He was admitted to the bar in 1857 and commenced the practice of law in Bellefonte. In addition to his legal work, he held several local offices, reflecting an early engagement with public affairs and the civic life of Centre County.

By 1860 Stover had established himself sufficiently in the legal profession to be elected district attorney of Centre County, Pennsylvania, a position he held from 1860 to 1862. His tenure as district attorney coincided with the secession crisis and the opening years of the Civil War. In 1861, as the conflict began, he enlisted in the Union Army as a private. Over the course of his military service he was successively promoted to captain and major, demonstrating leadership and earning increased responsibility. In May 1864 he was commissioned as colonel of the 184th Pennsylvania Infantry, commanding the regiment during the later stages of the war.

After the Civil War, Stover moved west to Missouri, settling in Versailles, Morgan County, as part of the broader postwar migration and development of the state. He resumed the practice of law there and quickly entered local public service. From 1866 to 1868 he served as district attorney of Morgan County, Missouri, continuing his prosecutorial career in his adopted state and gaining prominence in regional legal and political circles.

Stover’s growing reputation in Missouri Republican politics led to his election to the U.S. House of Representatives. He was chosen as a Republican to the Fortieth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Representative Joseph W. McClurg, who had left Congress to become governor of Missouri. Stover took his seat on December 7, 1868, and served until March 3, 1869. His brief congressional service came during the Reconstruction era, a period marked by debates over the reintegration of the former Confederate states and the civil and political rights of newly freed African Americans. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1868, and his tenure in Congress concluded with the end of that term.

Following his service in Congress, Stover returned to Versailles and resumed the practice of law. He broadened his professional activities to include the real estate business and became interested in mining pursuits in and around Versailles, reflecting the economic diversification of central Missouri in the late nineteenth century. His standing in public and civic affairs extended beyond the state: in 1876 he served as a delegate to the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, the international fair commemorating the hundredth anniversary of American independence. That same year he sought to return to Congress as a Republican candidate for the Forty-fifth Congress, but he was unsuccessful in the election.

In his later years, Stover continued to reside in central Missouri, remaining active in legal, business, and community matters. He died at Aurora Springs, Missouri, on October 27, 1889. He was interred in the City Cemetery in Versailles, Missouri. His legacy in the region is reflected in the town of Stover, Missouri, which bears his name, commemorating his role in the civic and political life of the state.