Representative Samuel Simons

Samuel Simons (1792 – January 13, 1847) was an American physician, state legislator, and Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut’s 4th congressional district, serving one term in Congress from 1843 to 1845. Born in 1792 in Bridgeport, Fairfield County, Connecticut, he spent his early life in his native town, where he pursued an academic course of study that prepared him for both professional and public service. Details of his family background are not extensively recorded, but his lifelong association with Bridgeport suggests deep local roots and a sustained engagement with the civic life of the community.

Simons’s education in Bridgeport led him initially into teaching, and he taught in local schools before turning to the study of medicine. After completing his medical training, he commenced the practice of medicine in Bridgeport. His medical career established him as a respected professional in the town and provided a platform for his later involvement in public affairs. In addition to his medical work, he held several local offices, reflecting the confidence placed in him by his fellow citizens and his growing prominence in local governance.

By 1830, Simons had entered state-level politics. That year he served as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives, representing his community in the state legislature. His service in the Connecticut House marked his formal entry into legislative work and allowed him to participate directly in shaping state policy during a period of economic and political development in Connecticut. Alongside his legislative duties, he expanded his civic and business responsibilities, becoming a director of the Housatonic Railroad, an important early transportation enterprise in the region, and a trustee of the Bridgeport Savings Bank, which underscored his role in the financial and commercial life of his city.

Simons’s growing reputation as a physician, local official, and state legislator led to his election to the United States House of Representatives as a Democrat from Connecticut’s 4th congressional district. He served in the Twenty-eighth Congress from March 4, 1843, to March 3, 1845. During this single term in office, he contributed to the legislative process at the national level at a time of significant political and economic change in the United States. As a member of the Democratic Party representing Connecticut, he participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of his constituents in Congress. While in the House of Representatives, he served as chairman of the Committee on Engraving, a standing committee responsible for matters related to the engraving and printing of official government documents and images, a role that reflected the trust of his colleagues in his judgment and administrative ability.

After the conclusion of his congressional service in March 1845, Simons returned to Bridgeport and resumed the practice of medicine. He continued to live and work in the community where he had been born, maintaining his professional activities and local engagements until his death. Samuel Simons died in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on January 13, 1847. He was interred in Mountain Grove Cemetery in Bridgeport, a burial place for many of the city’s prominent citizens, marking the final resting place of a physician-legislator who had served his town, state, and nation in multiple capacities.