THOMAS WORTHINGTON (1773-1827)

"I feel a desire to inform you of the principal scenes in which I have been engaged and of the services I have rendered."

Thomas Worthington, sixth governor of Ohio, was born at his father's estate near present Charles Town, Virginia (now West Virginia), in 1773. Left an orphan at seven, Thomas received little formal education. Worthington wrote about his many trials as a youth in a memoir now in the collections of the Oho Historical Society. At eighteen he went to sea for two years and then returned to the modest estate he had inherited from his father in Berkeley County. He engaged in farming, raising cattle, and surveying.

In 1796, he made a trip to the Scioto Valley in the Northwest Territory and determined to settle in the new town of Chillicothe. Back in Berkeley County, he married Eleanor Swearingen. In 1798, Worthington and his brother-in-law Edward Tiffin brought their families and freed slaves to Chillicothe.

Elected to the territorial legislature, Worthington emerged as a leader of the opposition to Territorial Governor Arthur St. Clair. In 1801, supporters sent Worthington to Washington to lobby for immediate statehood for the Ohio country. His efforts were successful, and he became an influential member of the constitutional convention of 1802. In 1803 the general assembly elected Worthington as one of the first two United States senators from Ohio. He served from 1803 to 1807.

In 1806, Worthington asked architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe, then working on the US capitol, to design a house for the Worthington family. Eventually called Adena, the home included large public rooms for entertaining and private spaces for the Worthingtonís growing family. Thomas and Eleanor Worthington eventually raised ten children at Adena.

Worthington served as a representative in the Ohio house from 1807 to 1808. From 1811 to 1814 Worthington served again in the US senate. During his second term in congress he took an unpopular stand by opposing the entrance of the country into war with Great Britain, but vigorously supported the war after hostilities began. From 1814 to 1818, Worthington served two terms as the governor of Ohio . As governor, his first concern was the successful prosecution of the war. After peace came he encouraged a strong militia, advocated county poor farms, proposed state regulation of banks, and favored a public elementary school system. He also urged prison reforms and encouraged home manufacturing.

In 1818 Worthington retired from politics for a time and devoted his energies to his numerous business enterprises, which included farming, stock raising, milling, and river shipping. He served again in the state house of representatives between 1821 and 1825. He was also a member of the important commission for locating and supervising the construction of canals.

Worthington continued to be active in business and politics despite failing health. He made several long trips in the interest of his business, and on one of these he died in New York City, June 20, 1827.

THOMAS WORTHINGTON: