375:, he strongly denied being a co-conspirator. Burr had become acquainted with Easton a few years previous and helped arrange his appointment as a judge. When Burr visited St. Louis in July, 1805 he met with Easton and revealed to him some details of his plot, asking him to join. Easton refused and broke off all further contact with Burr. Shortly thereafter Easton wrote to President Jefferson informing him of Burr's plot. In retaliation for Easton's repudiation, Wilkinson, a key Burr conspirator, began a campaign to have Easton removed from the court by leveling charges of official misconduct and fraud. Rufus Easton was acquitted and even traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with Jefferson. It was for naught, as the President removed Easton from his judicial post in February, 1806. Several months later however, Jefferson attempted to set right the removal by appointing Easton as U.S. Attorney for the territory.
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411:, his political and business affairs keeping him otherwise occupied. In November, 1812 the first territorial legislature was elected as well as a non-voting delegate to the U.S. Congress. Easton ran for the delegate position but was defeated by Edward Hempstead. He turned his attention to banking the following year, becoming a commissioner of the Bank of St. Louis. Later, in 1818 Easton took over as director of the bank. However, the
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and a new election ordered. The special election of 1817 was one of the wildest in
Missouri history. Many fistfights were reported, and even some stabbings. Free whiskey provided by Scott and his supporters at polling places provided ample lubrication to all who promised to vote for him. The results seemed preordained, and indeed the delegate seat went to John Scott.
470:, in August, 1825. The Scypion freedom lawsuit once again appeared in the Missouri courts while Easton was Attorney General. This partially due to an 1824 law, encouraged by Easton, that made such suits legal. Easton was also responsible for pushing an amendment that would scuttle a bill that prevented free blacks and mulattoes from living in Missouri.
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by a mere fifteen votes. Rufus Easton contested the election, claiming voter fraud and petitioned the U.S. House of
Representatives to overturn the results. An investigative committee ruled in favor of Easton. However, when the matter was put to a vote of the full House the seat was declared vacant
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and her family. Once Easton was removed from the bench, attorney James
Donaldson worked on behalf of Missouri slaveholders to get the decision overturned. Further, Easton—who dabbled in land speculation—had clashed with a group of land owners and agents represented by Donaldson and harsh words were
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is at the juncture of the
Mississippi and Missouri rivers and is near where Lewis and Clark set off for their Voyage of Discovery. Aside from the town name, the Easton family is memorialized in Easton Street and streets named after Easton children, including Alby, Alton, George, Langdon and Henry.
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When his term was up in 1826 Rufus Easton chose not to continue as
Attorney General. He semi-retired to his St. Charles, Missouri home, doing occasional legal work and managing his land holdings. After a brief illness Rufus Easton died on July 5, 1834, at his home. He was buried on the grounds of
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Rufus Easton continued his law practice, land dealings, and postmaster duties for the next several years. In the latter capacity he made history on April 21, 1810, by hand writing the first St. Louis postmark. He was responsible for the construction of the first post office building in St. Louis,
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from St. Louis and Easton felt this would be an ideal location for a competing town. After establishing a ferry service to the location the land was surveyed and laid out to create the town of Alton, Illinois—named for Easton's son—in 1817. Streets were named for his sons and daughter - Langdon,
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lead mines, and granting lands to war veterans were all taken up as cause by Easton. He secured funding to establish fourteen additional post offices in the
Missouri Territory and earned a place in history as the first Congressional sponsor of federal disaster aid, that to help victims of the
466:, who had studied law under and boarded with the Easton family. One of the major challenges Easton dealt with as Attorney General was helping guide the state through the gubernatorial succession process following the unexpected death of Missouri's second governor,
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Rufus Easton stood for election as the territorial delegate to
Congress again in September, 1814 and won. During his term Easton managed to accomplish a considerable amount on behalf of the Missouri territory. Issues on the sale of public lands, the
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exchanged. This culminated in June, 1806 with Easton bursting into a Board of Land
Commissioners meeting and beating Donaldson with a cane. The board brought assault charges against Easton and he was jailed for two weeks.
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Fed up with politics, at least temporarily, Rufus Easton turned his attention back to his lucrative land dealings and the aforementioned Bank of St. Louis. Many of his land holdings were located around bluffs across the
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stands today. Easton would continue to serve as postmaster until
January, 1815. While Rufus Easton held a commission of Colonel in the militia, it is believed that he was not an active participant in the
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Stung by the assault on his honor over the conspiracy and his removal as judge, Rufus Easton seriously considered challenging Aaron Burr to a duel. Fortunately, friend and
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Easton purchased land just east of the
Mississippi River in 1815 where he established a town. He named the town in honor of his firstborn son, Alton Rufus Easton.
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of St. Louis in 1805. It was a time of political intrigue in the western United States and new territories with several prominent men implicated in the
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in an 1804 duel. This was not the only instance of Easton showing intemperance. While still a territorial judge Easton had ruled favorably on the
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wrote Easton in December, 1806 convincing him not to pursue the matter. Burr of course was experienced in such affairs of honor, having killed
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Rufus Easton returned to politics in 1821 when he was appointed the second Attorney General for the new state of Missouri by governor
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Unfortunately, Easton was not prosperous in Alton and speculation there left him in financial straits for the remainder of his life.
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250:(May 4, 1774 – July 5, 1834) was an American attorney, politician, and postmaster. He served as a non-voting delegate to the
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St. Louis, Missouri and Alton, Illinois both had streets named for Rufus Easton. The St. Louis street was later renamed
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Just a year after arriving in St. Louis, Rufus Easton received two federal appointments from President
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St. Louis: The Fourth City, 1764-1911, Vol.2, S.J. Clark Publishing, 1911. Pp. 570-572
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Rufus Easton School, a former school in Alton, Illinois was so named in his honor.
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707:. Madison County Gazetteer via The Madison County IlGenWeb. 2012. Archived from
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Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from Missouri Territory
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In 1982 the United States Postal Service issued a stamp featuring Rufus Easton.
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The Indomitable Mary Easton Sibley: Pioneer of Women's Education in Missouri
286:, to parents Joseph and Mehitable (Baker) Easton. After studying Law under
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prior to statehood. After statehood he became Missouri's second
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during that time period, primarily regarding the actions of
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adversely affected the bank and it closed within the year.
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For Which We Stand; The Life and Papers of Rufus Easton
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Missouri Territory's at-large congressional district
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Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
314:'s expedition to set up a territorial government in
595:. Columbia, Missouri: University of Missouri Press.
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578:, University of Missouri Press, 1999. Pp. 271-272
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367:. While Easton did exchange correspondence with
637:Adamson, Bruce Campbell with Foley, William E.
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16:American attorney, politician, and postmaster
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130:September 17, 1814 – August 5, 1816
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359:. Additionally he was appointed the first
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278:Rufus Easton was born on May 4, 1774, in
1213:Politicians from Litchfield, Connecticut
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302:. In Vincennes he became friends with
252:United States House of Representatives
652:"Joe Sonderman's Yesterday St. Louis"
7:
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545:. Missouri Historical Society. 2012
450:George and Easton, and wife Alby.
262:. Rufus Easton was the founder of
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576:Dictionary of Missouri Biography
540:"Rufus Easton Family Collection"
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1218:Politicians from Rome, New York
357:United States territorial court
342:Government service and politics
591:Wolferman, Kristie C. (2008).
284:Litchfield County, Connecticut
1:
855:Attorneys General of Missouri
769:U.S. House of Representatives
752:U.S. House of Representatives
733:. Beall Mansion website. 2004
107:U.S. House of Representatives
806:Attorney General of Missouri
678:"Rufus Easton (id: E000022)"
495:Dr. Martin Luther King Drive
45:Attorney General of Missouri
657:. STL Media.net. April 2004
1234:
1208:Missouri attorneys general
574:Christensen, Lawrence O.,
515:"Rufus Easton (1774-1834)"
462:. He replaced his protégé
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705:"The Beginnings of Alton"
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676:United States Congress.
731:"Rufus Easton, founder"
608:Stevens, Walter Barlow.
436:In 1816 Easton lost to
380:U.S. Postmaster General
1015:Elliott Woolfolk Major
889:William Barclay Napton
431:New Madrid earthquakes
312:William Henry Harrison
919:Ephraim Brevard Ewing
393:brought on behalf of
326:Founding of Alton, IL
320:District of Louisiana
216:Democratic-Republican
205:St. Charles, Missouri
883:Robert William Wells
816:Robert William Wells
517:. Ancestry.com. 2012
402:very near where the
98:Robert William Wells
913:James B. Gardenhire
711:on January 22, 2012
74:Abraham J. Williams
1099:William L. Webster
1081:Norman H. Anderson
1063:Jonathan E. Taylor
907:William A. Robards
901:B. F. Stringfellow
476:Lindenwood College
395:Marguerite Scypion
387:Alexander Hamilton
310:, joining them in
268:Mary Easton Sibley
256:Missouri Territory
112:Missouri Territory
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1179:
1148:
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1009:Herbert S. Hadley
949:Horace B. Johnson
822:
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813:Succeeded by
781:Succeeded by
482:Legacy and honors
447:Mississippi River
426:Washington County
300:Indiana Territory
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1051:Stratton Shartel
1033:Jesse W. Barrett
1027:Frank McAllister
1003:Edward Coke Crow
997:Robert F. Walker
967:John A. Hockaday
937:T. T. Crittenden
925:J. Proctor Knott
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767:Delegate to the
761:Edward Hempstead
758:Preceded by
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478:in St. Charles.
460:Alexander McNair
454:Attorney General
353:Thomas Jefferson
304:Edward Hempstead
260:Attorney General
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163:Personal details
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141:Edward Hempstead
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66:Alexander McNair
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373:James Wilkinson
365:Burr Conspiracy
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212:Political party
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1111:Chris Koster
1045:North Gentry
991:John M. Wood
985:Banton Boone
955:Andrew Baker
931:Aikman Welch
877:Rufus Easton
876:
871:Edward Bates
804:
799:Edward Bates
766:
735:. Retrieved
725:
713:. Retrieved
709:the original
699:
687:. Retrieved
681:
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659:. Retrieved
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609:
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547:. Retrieved
519:. Retrieved
509:
472:
464:Edward Bates
457:
443:
435:
422:
404:Gateway Arch
400:
391:freedom suit
377:
350:
337:
329:
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248:Rufus Easton
247:
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200:(1834-07-05)
198:July 5, 1834
148:Succeeded by
125:
93:Succeeded by
86:Edward Bates
52:
25:Rufus Easton
18:
1198:1834 deaths
1193:1774 births
1125:(2019–2023)
1119:(2017–2019)
1117:Josh Hawley
1113:(2009–2017)
1107:(1993–2009)
1101:(1985–1993)
1095:(1977–1985)
1089:(1969–1977)
1083:(1965–1969)
1077:(1961–1965)
1071:(1953–1961)
1065:(1945–1953)
1059:(1933–1945)
1053:(1928–1933)
1047:(1925–1928)
1039:Robert Otto
1035:(1921–1925)
1029:(1917–1921)
1023:(1913–1917)
1021:John Barker
1017:(1909–1913)
1011:(1905–1909)
1005:(1897–1905)
999:(1893–1897)
993:(1889–1893)
987:(1885–1889)
981:(1881–1885)
975:(1877–1881)
969:(1875–1877)
963:(1872–1875)
961:Henry Ewing
957:(1871–1872)
951:(1869–1871)
945:(1865–1869)
939:(1864–1865)
933:(1861–1864)
927:(1858–1861)
921:(1857–1858)
915:(1851–1857)
909:(1849–1851)
903:(1845–1849)
897:(1839–1845)
891:(1836–1839)
885:(1826–1836)
879:(1821–1826)
873:(1820–1821)
419:To Congress
409:War of 1812
185:Connecticut
178:May 4, 1774
136:Preceded by
81:Preceded by
1187:Categories
895:Samuel Bay
810:1821–1826
784:John Scott
778:1814–1816
737:August 22,
715:August 22,
661:August 21,
549:August 19,
521:August 20,
502:References
438:John Scott
369:Aaron Burr
361:Postmaster
308:John Scott
280:Washington
274:Early life
225:Alby Smith
181:Washington
174:1774-05-04
153:John Scott
1105:Jay Nixon
772:from the
322:in 1804.
316:St. Louis
296:Vincennes
254:from the
230:Signature
126:In office
110:from the
57:1821–1826
53:In office
1162:Category
119:district
117:at-large
62:Governor
689:July 5,
1041:(1925)
641:, 1996
222:Spouse
207:, U.S.
655:(PDF)
543:(PDF)
332:Alton
1172:List
739:2012
717:2012
691:2022
663:2012
551:2012
523:2012
306:and
195:Died
168:Born
1189::
680:.
616:^
601:^
583:^
559:^
531:^
433:.
318:,
298:,
282:,
270:.
187:,
183:,
114:'s
847:e
840:t
833:v
741:.
719:.
693:.
665:.
553:.
525:.
497:.
176:)
172:(
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