Linn Boyd

Democrat Representative of Kentucky's 1st district

Congresses Served

House Terms

November 22, 1800 (59 years old)

Birthday

December 17, 1859

Death

Served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1851 to 1855.
Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives multiple times, serving from 1835 to 1837 and again from 1839 to 1855.
Initially elected as a Jacksonian and later as a Democrat, representing Kentucky.
Boyd County, Kentucky, is named in his honor.
Born in Nashville, Tennessee, and raised in Trigg County, Kentucky.
Moved to Calloway County, Kentucky, in 1826 to farm and began his political career there.
Served in the Kentucky House of Representatives in 1827 and again in 1831.
Played a key role in the annexation of Texas and the passage of the Compromise of 1850 through Congress.
Was nominated for Governor of Kentucky in 1848 but declined to run.
Mentioned as a candidate for Vice President of the United States at the 1856 Democratic National Convention but was not officially nominated.
Elected the 16th Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky in 1859 but died shortly after taking office.
His death had significant political implications for Kentucky at the onset of the Civil War.
Buried in Oak Grove Cemetery in Paducah, Kentucky.
Married twice, first to Alice C. Bennett and then to widow Anna L. Dixon, and had children.