Peter M. Dox

Summary

Peter Myndert Dox (September 11, 1813 – April 2, 1891) was an American politician who served the state of Alabama in the U.S. House of Representatives between 1869 and 1873.

Peter M. Dox
Congressman Peter Myndert Dox
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Alabama's 5th district
In office
March 4, 1869 – March 3, 1873
Preceded byJohn Benton Callis
Succeeded byJohn Henry Caldwell
Personal details
Born
Peter Myndert Dox

(1813-09-11)September 11, 1813
Geneva, New York
DiedApril 2, 1891(1891-04-02) (aged 77)
Huntsville, Alabama
Political partyDemocratic
RelationsMyndert M. Dox (uncle)
Gerrit L. Dox (uncle)
John Nicholas (grandfather)
Alma materHobart College

Early life edit

Dox was born in Geneva, Ontario County, New York on September 11, 1813.[1] He was the eldest child of Abraham Dox and Anne Cary (née Nicholas) Dox. Among his siblings were John Nicolas Dox, Mary Blair Dox (wife of Timothy Fales Wardwell), Anne Nicholas Dox, and Ernest B. Dox.[2]

His paternal grandfather was merchant and skipper Pieter Dox, who served in the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War.[3] His paternal uncles included Myndert M. Dox, Collector of the Port of Buffalo, and Gerrit L. Dox, New York State Treasurer.[2] His maternal grandfather was U.S. Representative John Nicholas from Virginia's 18th district.

He graduated from Hobart College at Geneva in 1833.[4][5]

Career edit

He studied law, was admitted to the bar, and practiced at Geneva. Dox served as a member of the New York State Assembly in 1842, and as a Know Nothing judge of the Ontario County courts from November 1855 until his resignation on March 18, 1856. He then moved to Alabama and settled in Madison County, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits.[5]

Dox was a delegate to the Alabama constitutional convention of 1865. In 1868, he was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. House of Representatives, and reelected for the following term, serving until 1873.[1]

Personal life edit

On October 12, 1854, Dox married Matilda Walker Pope (1826–1871).[6] After the death of his first wife in 1871, he married Margaret Simpson.[7]

He retired from public life, and died in Huntsville on April 2, 1891. He is buried in Maple Hill Cemetery in Huntsville.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "DOX, Peter Myndert 1813 – 1891". bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  2. ^ a b Talcott, Sebastian Visscher (1973). Genealogical Notes of New York and New England Families. Genealogical Publishing Com. p. 168. ISBN 978-0-8063-0537-0. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  3. ^ Bielinski, Stefan. "Catharina Lansing Dox". exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov. New York State Museum. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  4. ^ Hobart College: General Catalogue of Officers, Graduates and Students. 1825-1897. Press of W.F. Humphrey. 1897. p. 7. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  5. ^ a b Charles F. Milliken (1911). A History of Ontario County, New York and Its People. Lewis Historical Publishing Company. p. 368.
  6. ^ Genealogical Notes of New York and New England Families. Heritage Books. 2000. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-7884-1956-0. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  7. ^ du Bellet, Louise Pecquet (1907). Some Prominent Virginia Families. J.P. Bell Company (Incorporated). p. 323. Retrieved 23 January 2023.

External links edit

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Alabama's 5th congressional district

1869-1873
Succeeded by