John W. Dawson
| John W. Dawson | |
|---|---|
John W. Dawson
|
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| Governor of Utah Territory | |
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In office 1861–1861 |
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| Preceded by | Alfred Cumming |
| Succeeded by | Stephen S. Harding |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 21, 1820 Cambridge, Indiana, United States |
| Died | September 10, 1877 (aged 56) |
| Resting place | Lindenwood Cemetery, Fort Wayne, Indiana |
| Citizenship | American |
| Political party | Republican |
| Other political affiliations |
Originally Democrat |
John W. Dawson (October 21, 1820 – September 10, 1877) was Governor of Utah Territory in 1861.
Born on October 21, 1820, in Cambridge, Indiana he was a lawyer, a farmer and a newspaper editor before he entered politics. He eventually became the Governor of Utah.
Dawson, along with T.N. Hood, leased George W. Wood's interest in the Fort Wayne Times and People's Press for one year, starting on September 7, 1853. They changed the name to the Fort Wayne Times and continued to publish until Hood sold his interest to Dawson and Wood. Wood retired in 1854, leaving Dawson in charge of the paper. In 1854, the Times had a decidedly Anti-Nebraska sentiment while Thomas Tigar's Fort Wayne Sentinel had the opposite attitude. Dawson's political issues included being anti-abolition, temperance, free public schools, and various Know-nothing/Fusion Party/People's Party issues. The paper continued in various forms until 1865, when Dawson sold the paper to Henry Dills and Isaac W. Campbell. In 1866, the paper merged with the Fort Wayne Sentinel.
Dawson ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Indiana House of Representatives in 1854, Secretary of State of Indiana in 1856, and United States Congress in 1858. He started as a Democrat, but later became a Republican.
Abraham Lincoln named him governor of Utah Territory in 1861, but he left the territory and his post as governor after only three weeks due to tensions with the Mormon residents. Dawson allegedly made "grossly improper proposals" to the Mormon widow Albina Merrill Williams, who responded by thrashing him with a fire shovel.
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