John Pendleton

For other people named John Pendleton, see John Pendleton (disambiguation).

John Strother Pendleton (March 1, 1802 – November 19, 1868), nicknamed "The Lone Star", was a nineteenth-century congressman, diplomat, lawyer and farmer from Virginia.

Biography

Born near Culpeper, Virginia, Pendleton pursued preparatory studies as a child. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1824, commencing practice in Culpeper County, Virginia. He married Lucy Ann Williams, the daughter of James and Elizabeth Bruce Williams, on December 2, 1824, at "Soldiers Rest" in Orange County, Virginia. During the 1820s, he resided at the Slaughter-Hill House, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. The two had no biological children, but adopted Lucy's brother Philip's son, George Morton Williams, when he was three years old. Pendleton was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates from 1830 to 1833 and again from 1836 to 1839. He was appointed by President John Tyler Chargé d'Affaires to Chile in 1841, serving until 1844 when he was elected a Whig to the United States House of Representatives, serving there from 1845 to 1849. In the House, he obtained the nickname "The Lone Star" due to the fact he was the only Whig from Virginia. Afterwards, Pendleton returned to being a statesman and was appointed by President Millard Fillmore Chargé d'Affaires to the Argentine Confederation in 1851, serving until 1854 and in 1852 was Minister to Brazil with Robert C. Schenck to negotiate a treaty of commerce with Paraguay and Uruguay.

He returned to the United States and engaged in farming before his death on November 19, 1868, near Culpeper, Virginia. He was interred in the family cemetery at "Redwood" in Cupeper.

External links

• John Pendleton at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• John Pendleton at Find A Grave

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Samuel Chilton	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia's 9th congressional district March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1849	Succeeded by Jeremiah Morton
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Richard Pollard	United States Ambassador to Chile August 16, 1841 – June 6, 1844	Succeeded by William Crump
Preceded by William A. Harris	United States Chargé d'Affaires, Argentina February 27, 1851 – March 31, 1854	Succeeded by James A. Peden