Representative Robert Hanna Hammond

Robert Hanna Hammond (April 28, 1791 – June 2, 1847) was an American politician and military officer who served two terms as a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania from 1837 to 1841. A native of Milton, Pennsylvania, he was active in both civil and military affairs and participated in national service during a formative period in the early nineteenth century.

Hammond was born on April 28, 1791, in Milton, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. Little is recorded about his early family life or formal education, but his subsequent career in both the military and public office suggests that he acquired the training and experience necessary to assume responsible positions in local and national affairs. His lifelong association with Milton and Northumberland County anchored his public service in the concerns of his home region.

Hammond entered national service in the United States Army in the post–War of 1812 period. He enlisted as a lieutenant in 1817, beginning what would become a recurring connection with the military throughout his life. In addition to his regular Army service, he was a member of the Pennsylvania state militia, in which he attained the rank of brigadier general. This combination of federal and state military roles reflected both his personal commitment to national defense and the broader reliance on militia forces in the early republic.

After his initial period of Army service, Hammond resigned his commission and returned to Milton, where he embarked on a career in local public administration. He served as register and recorder of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, a position that placed him at the center of county record-keeping and legal documentation. From 1833 to 1837 he also held the federal appointment of postmaster of Milton, overseeing the community’s postal operations at a time when the mail system was a critical instrument of communication and commerce.

Hammond’s experience in local office and his alignment with the Democratic Party led to his election to the national legislature. He was elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth Congresses, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania from March 4, 1837, to March 3, 1841. As a member of the Democratic Party representing Pennsylvania, he contributed to the legislative process during two terms in office, participating in debates and votes during a significant period in American history marked by issues such as economic policy in the wake of the Panic of 1837, questions of federal power, and the continuing expansion of the United States. In Congress he represented the interests of his constituents while taking part in the broader democratic process that shaped national policy in the late 1830s and early 1840s.

Following his congressional service, Hammond again turned to military duty when the United States became engaged in the Mexican–American War. He reentered the Army and was commissioned as a paymaster, a position of substantial responsibility involving the management and disbursement of funds to troops in the field. During this service he was wounded and subsequently ordered home on sick leave. While returning from his assignment, Hammond died at sea before reaching port on June 2, 1847. His body was returned to his native community, and he was interred in Milton Cemetery in Milton, Pennsylvania, closing a life marked by alternating periods of military and civil service to his state and nation.