Eleazer Wheelock Ripley

Eleazer Wheelock Ripley (April 15, 1782 – March 2, 1839) was an American attorney, soldier, and politician who was the U.S. representative for Louisiana's 2nd congressional district from 1835 until 1839. He was previously a member of both the Massachusetts and Louisiana state legislatures and served as a Brigadier General in the War of 1812.

Biography

Ripley was born in Hanover, New Hampshire on April 15, 1782, to Abigail and Reverend Sylvanus Ripley. His ancestor Ralph Wheelock arrived to Massachusetts Bay Colony from England around 1636 during the Great Migration. His mother was the daughter of Eleazar Wheelock, the founder of Dartmouth College and his maternal uncle was John Wheelock, the college's president. His father was a professor of divinity at Dartmouth in the 1780s. Ripley later attended Dartmouth, graduating in 1800.

After being admitted to the bar Ripley moved to Kennebec County, Maine, and Portland, Maine where he began his law practice. He served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1810 to 1811 and was elected to the Massachusetts Senate in 1812.

Ripley briefly commanded Brown's division during the Siege of Fort Erie after Brown was wounded at Lundy's Lane, but was superseded by Brigadier General Edmund Pendleton Gaines. and left the army in 1820 to continue his career in politics. He served in the Louisiana State Senate in 1832. He served as a United States representative from Louisiana's Second District from March 4, 1835, to March 2, 1839.

He was the subject of a United States Supreme Court decision, United States v. Ripley (1832). As a result of this decision, Ripley owed the United States a sum of money that he had expended while serving as a Major General by brevet. The building involved in the lawsuit is the oldest building in Uptown New Orleans.

Legacy

Ripley's efforts during the war were recognized by the renaming of village of Staunton, Ohio, to Ripley, Ohio, in his honor. The military facilities Fort Ripley and Camp Ripley were also named in his honor. Other places named after him include Ripley County, Indiana; Ripley County, Missouri; Ripley, New York; Ripley, Tennessee; Ripley, Mississippi and Fort Ripley, Minnesota.