Joseph M. Root
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio's 21st district
In office March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1851
Preceded by	Edward S. Hamlin
Succeeded by	Norton Strange Townshend
Member of the Ohio Senate from the Huron & Erie Counties district
In office December 7, 1840 – December 4, 1842
Preceded by	Josiah Tracy
Succeeded by	John Fuller
Member of the Ohio Senate from the 30th district
In office January 3, 1870 – December 31, 1871 Serving with Homer Everett
Preceded by	Homer Everett
Succeeded by	W. O. Parker
Personal details
Born	Joseph Mosley Root (1807-10-07)October 7, 1807 Brutus, New York
Died	April 7, 1879(1879-04-07) (aged 71) Sandusky, Ohio
Resting place	Oakland Cemetery, Sandusky, Ohio
Political party	Whig
Other political affiliations	Free Soil
Spouse	Mary S. Buckingham
Children	five daughters
Signature

Joseph Mosley Root (October 7, 1807 – April 7, 1879) was a U.S. Representative from Ohio.

Life and career

The son of Joseph Root III & Tryphena Mosley he was born October 7, 1807, in Brutus, New York. Root pursued classical studies and later studied law in Auburn, New York. He moved to Ohio in 1829, where he was admitted to the bar in 1830 and commenced practice in Norwalk.

In 1832-1833, Root was Mayor of Sandusky, Ohio.^[1] In 1835, Root married Mary S. Buckingham in Norwalk. They had five daughters.^[1] Root was elected prosecuting attorney of Huron County in 1837. He served as a member of the State Senate in 1840 and 1841.

Root was elected as a Whig to the Twenty-ninth Congress. He was reelected to the Thirtieth Congress and reelected as a Free-Soil candidate to the Thirty-first Congress (March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1851). In 1848, he introduced a resolution that recommended New Mexico and California have territorial governments which excluded slavery.^[2] He served as chairman of the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of the Treasury (Thirtieth Congress). He served as Presidential elector on the Republican ticket in 1860. He was appointed United States Attorney for the northern district of Ohio in 1861. He was again a member of the Ohio Senate in 1869. He served as Democratic delegate to the State constitutional convention in 1873. He was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for probate judge of Erie County in 1875.

Death and legacy

He died in Sandusky, Ohio, April 7, 1879. He was interred in Oakland Cemetery.

The Joseph Root House in Sandusky may have been a "safe house" on the Underground Railroad, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[1]

Sources

• United States Congress. "Joseph M. Root (id: R000433)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.