Joseph Hiester

Joseph Hiester
5thGovernor of Pennsylvania
In office December 19, 1820 – December 16, 1823
Preceded by	William Findlay
Succeeded by	John Andrew Shulze
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania
In office 1797–1805
Preceded by	George Ege
Succeeded by	Isaac Anderson,John WhitehillandChristian Lower
Constituency	3rd district(1787–1803) 5th district(1803–1805)
In office 1815–1820
Preceded by	Daniel Udree
Succeeded by	Daniel Udree
Constituency	7th district
Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives
In office 1787–1790
Member of thePennsylvania Senatefor the17th district
In office 1790–1794
Preceded by	district created
Succeeded by	Presley Carr Lane
Personal details
Born	(1752-11-18)November 18, 1752 Bern Township,Province of Pennsylvania,British America
Died	June 10, 1832(1832-06-10)(aged 79) Reading, Pennsylvania,U.S.
Resting place	Charles Evans Cemetery
Political party	Democratic-Republican
Spouse	Elizabeth Whitman Hiester (?–1825; her death)
Signature

Joseph Hiester(November 18, 1752 – June 10, 1832) was an American politician, who served as the fifthgovernor of Pennsylvaniafrom 1820 to 1823.He was a member of theHiester familypolitical dynasty,and was a member of theDemocratic-Republican Party.

Biography

Hiester was the son of John Hiester and Maria Barbara Epler. He received a common-school education when he was not working on the farm, and became a clerk in a store in Reading run by Adam Whitman. He became a partner in the store in 1771 when he married Elizabeth, Whitman's daughter.He owned slaves.

At the beginning of theAmerican Revolutionary War,he raised and equipped in that town a company with which he took part in the battles ofLong IslandandGermantown.He was then promoted tocolonel.He was captured and briefly confined in the prison ship "Jersey," where he did much to alleviate the sufferings of his fellow prisoners. Later he was transferred toNew York Citywhere he was exchanged.

He was a member of the convention of 1776 that drafted theArticles of Confederation,of the Pennsylvania state constitutional convention which ratified theUnited States Constitution,and of the state constitutional convention of 1790. He served in thePennsylvania House of Representativesfrom 1787 to 1790 and thePennsylvania Senatefor the17th districtfrom 1790 to 1794.In 1807, he was appointed one of the two major generals to command the quota of Pennsylvania militia that was called for by thepresident.He served in theUnited States House of Representativesfrom 1797 until 1805, and again from 1815 until 1820, 14 years altogether. In1817,he ran for governor, and was defeated byWilliam Findlay.Hiester faced Findlay again in1820and narrowly won a single term in office. Refusing on principle to stand for reelection in1823,he served until 1824 when he retired from public life. During his term, he presided over the dedication of the first state capitol building in the new capital ofHarrisburg.He surprised partisans and opponents by making appointments strictly on merit rather than party affiliation.

He was known by the nickname of "Old German Grey" and spoke with aPennsylvania DutchGerman accent.

Initially buried at Reading's Reformed Church cemetery after his death in 1832, his remains were exhumed and reinterred at theCharles Evans Cemeteryduring the mid-19th century.

Legacy

A residence hall on thePenn StateUniversity Park campus was named after him.

References

• United States Congress."Joseph Hiester (id: H000574)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Wilson, J. G.;Fiske, J.,eds. (1892)."Hiester, Daniel".Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography.New York: D. Appleton.
• The Political Graveyard

External links

• Joseph HiesteratFind a Grave