Richard BRODHEAD, Congress, PA (1811-1863)

BRODHEAD, Richard, (father of Joseph Davis Brodhead), a Representative and a Senator from Pennsylvania; born in Lehman Township, Pike County, Pa., January 5, 1811; moved to Easton in 1830; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1836 and commenced practice in Easton; member, State house of representatives 1837-1839; appointed treasurer of Northampton County in 1841; elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-eighth, Twenty-ninth, and Thirtieth Congresses (March 4, 1843-March 3, 1849); chairman, Committee on Revolutionary Pensions (Twenty-ninth Congress); was not a candidate for renomination in 1848; elected as a Democrat to the United States Senate and served from March 4, 1851, to March 3, 1857; chairman, Committee on Claims (Thirty-second and Thirty-third Congresses), Committee on Revolutionary Claims (Thirty-second Congress); died in Easton, Pa., September 16, 1863; interment in Easton Cemetery.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present