Thomas L. Young

Thomas Lowry Young (December 14, 1832 – July 20, 1888) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Ohio. Young, a Republican, served as the 33rd governor of Ohio from March 2, 1877, to January 14, 1878.

Early life Young was born in Killyleagh, County Down, in Ulster, a northern province of Ireland. At that time, all of Ireland was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. While living in Ireland, his father was a gardener for The 2nd Baron Dufferin and Claneboye. He immigrated with his parents to the United States as a child and spent his childhood in New York.

He worked for a Democratic Party newspaper in Sidney, Ohio in 1862 between military service, and afterward, and spoke out against the Lincoln Administration, believing them to be too soft in the war effort thus far. He advanced through the ranks of the artillery to become a First Sergeant in the 3rd U.S. Artillery, serving under Brevet Major John F. Reynolds. After his service ended in January 1858, Young moved to Pennsylvania, then to Cincinnati a year later, where he served as the Assistant Superintendent for the House of Refuge Reform School for Youth.

In March 1861 Young, believing a civil war to be imminent, wrote to General Winfield Scott volunteering his services. He officially joined the American Civil War effort a month later. Between August and December, he served under John C. Frémont as a captain while stationed in Missouri.

Career Shortly afterward, he began his political career with an appointment as Assistant City Auditor, a position he held for the rest of the year. He was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives afterward and served a single two-year term from 1866 to 1868. Young became Hamilton County Recorder in October 1867, and held the position until President Andrew Johnson named him Internal Revenue Supervisor of Southern Ohio in late 1868, a position he held through 1869.

After resigning from that position, Young worked in real estate until 1871 when he was elected to the Ohio State Senate.

Young was elected the 12th lieutenant governor of Ohio in 1875, defeating Samuel Cary, taking office in 1876. He then filled out the term of Rutherford B. Hayes when the latter was elected to the presidency, serving from 1877 to 1878.

Young was then elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1878 and served two terms before losing a battle for renomination in 1882.

Personal life He died in 1888 while holding a position on the Cincinnati Board of Public Affairs. Young was buried in Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati.