Background
Thomas was born in Shepherdstown, Virginia (now West Virginia), in 1777. He was the son of Jesse and Sabina (Symmes) Thomas. Through his mother he claimed descent from Lord Baltimore.
Thomas was born in Shepherdstown, Virginia (now West Virginia), in 1777. He was the son of Jesse and Sabina (Symmes) Thomas. Through his mother he claimed descent from Lord Baltimore.
In 1799 he was studying law with his brother at Washington, Mason County, Ky.
At Washington, Mason County, Ky. , where he also served as county clerk until 1803. An early marriage ending with the death of his wife in that year led him to leave Kentucky, and he began practising law in Lawrenceburg, Indiana Territory. He was soon elected (1805) to the lower branch of the territorial legislature, where he served as speaker for three years. In 1805 he was appointed captain of militia in Dearborn County by Gov. William H. Harrison.
In 1808 Thomas was elected as delegate to Congress to fill a vacancy, thanks largely to the support of Illinoisans who desired division of Indiana Territory. He kept his preelection promise to work for this end, and was successful before the end of the session in March 1809. Realizing that "the service he had rendered the Illinoisans was fatal to his further political aspirations in Indiana", he shrewdly obtained from President Madison appointment to one of the three federal judgeships in the newly created territory of Illinois. Removing thither, he served continuously as federal judge until 1818, winning a reputation for ability and fairness.
As a delegate from St. Clair County, Thomas was chosen president of the first constitutional convention of Illinois in 1818. He was one of the first United States senators from the state of Illinois, serving until March 1829. His most important senatorial action occurred in 1820 during the debate over slavery and the admission of Missouri into the Union. Although not a slaveholder himself, he believed in the institution and favored its establishment in Illinois. During the congressional deadlock relative to the admission of Missouri and Maine, however, he introduced an amendment prohibiting slavery north of the line 36°30' except for the section included in the proposed state of Missouri. This amendment was embodied in the famous "Missouri Compromise". Thomas' support of his friend William H. Crawford for the presidency in 1824 led to alienation from his party, which was largely composed of Jackson followers. He therefore refused to stand for reelection at the expiration of his term and left Illinois for Mount Vernon, Ohio, where his wife had considerable property. In 1832 he saw service in the Black Hawk War. His last participation in politics was the nomination of his friend William H. Harrison for the presidency in 1840.
Always interested in business (in 1817 he had set up the first wool-carding machine in Illinois), he now turned his attention to the management of his wife's property with such success that he accumulated a moderate fortune. He assisted in organizing St. Paul's Episcopal Church, at Mount Vernon, of which he was a member.
After the death of his wife in 1851 his mind became deranged and he committed suicide on the night of May 3, 1853, dying childless.
His "quickness of perception, clear intellect, sound judgment, and knowledge of human nature, constituting strong common sense" were invaluable to him as a politician.
In 1803 he married, but his wife died. On December 2, 1806, he married Rebecca (Mackenzie) Hamtranck, widow of Col. Hamtranck and mother of John Francis Hamtranck.
Jesse Burgess Thomas, 1832-1915, a Baptist minister, was his grand-nephew.