Elijah Hayward | |
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5th Commissioner of the General Land Office | |
In office September 30, 1830 – July 24, 1835 |
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Preceded by | George Graham |
Succeeded by | Ethan Allen Brown |
Personal details | |
Born |
Bridgewater, Massachusetts |
November 17, 1786
Died | September 22, 1864 McConnelsville, Ohio |
(aged 77)
Resting place | McConnelsville Cemetery |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Eliza Kingman |
Elijah Hayward (November 17, 1786 – September 22, 1864) was a lawyer in the U.S. State of Ohio who represented his county in the Ohio House of Representatives, sat on the Ohio Supreme Court for a short time, and was Commissioner of the General Land Office. He was a noted genealogist and historian.
Elijah Hayward was born in 1786 in Bridgewater, Plymouth County, Massachusetts. He was descended from Thomas Hayward, one of the original proprietors of Bridgewater, who immigrated from England in 1634. His mother's ancestor came on the same ship passage. Hayward attended the village schools, and in 1801 entered Bridgewater Academy, where he learnt English grammar and arithmetic for three months.
Starting in late 1801, Hayward worked in stores in West Bridgewater, and later Plymouth. In 1803, he went to Hanover, to learn shipbuilding. He became partner with David Kingman in 1807, and married his daughter, Eliza Kingman, February 19, 1809. He traveled to England on one of his ships, the Belfast, in 1812, and returned to the U.S. in June of that year after hearing of the death of his partner and father-in-law Kingman. In Hanover, he decided to pursue the study of law at the office of John Winslow, esq. His studies were delayed by the need to attend to his father-in-law's estate, including a return to London for a lawsuit. He returned to East Bridgewater to study under Nahum Mitchell.
In the autumn of 1819, having studied law off and on for four and one half years, Hayward immigrated to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he opened an office. He established a partnership with David Wade, which lasted for eight years. In 1825, he was elected to represent Hamilton County in the Ohio House of Representatives, serving until 1829 in the 24th to 27th General Assemblies.