Albert A. Bliss

Albert Asahel Bliss was a Whig politician from the U.S. State of Ohio. He served in the Ohio House of Representatives and was the Ohio State Treasurer for five years.

Albert Asahel Bliss
7th Ohio State Treasurer
In office February 28, 1847[1] – January 12, 1852
Governor	William Bebb Seabury Ford Reuben Wood
Preceded by	Joseph Whitehill
Succeeded by	John G. Breslin
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives from the Lorain County district
In office December 2, 1839 – December 4, 1842
Preceded by	William Andrews
Succeeded by	Richard Warner
Personal details
Born	March 25, 1812 Canton, Connecticut
Died	May 14, 1893 (aged 81) Leoni, Michigan
Political party	Whig Republican
Spouse(s)	Almira Beebe
Children	five
Alma mater	Oneida Institute

Biography

Albert A. Bliss was born March 25, 1812, at Canton, Connecticut. He was the son of Asahel Bliss and Lydia Griswold.[2] His younger brother was Philemon Bliss.[3] At age fourteen, he attended the Oneida Institute at Whitestown, New York, where he learned the trades of chairmaking and house and sign painting.[3][4] He worked at his trade, and saved money to go west.[4]

Bliss arrived at Elyria, Ohio, in 1833, where he studied law at the office of Whittlesey and Hamlin,[3] and edited the Ohio Atlas.[4] He was admitted to the bar in September, 1835 in Cleveland, Ohio. He removed to Cleveland, where he worked as a lawyer, and edited the Daily Gazette.[3]

Bliss returned to Elyria in 1837, and practiced for ten years. He was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives for three terms,[3] as a Whig.[4] He was elected by the legislature as Ohio State Treasurer early in 1847 to a three-year term. He was re-elected in 1850.[5] In 1851, Ohio voters adopted a new constitution, which made treasurer a two-year term elected by voters. In the 1851 election, Bliss lost to his Democratic opponent, John G. Breslin.[6] Bliss served until the second Monday in January, 1852.

Bliss returned to Elyria late in 1852, where he remained until 1863. In 1857, Bliss's successor was accused of embezzling large sums from the treasury, and accused Bliss of similar crimes. Bliss managed to defend himself and avoid punishment.[7] He moved to Jackson, Michigan, in 1863, and was appointed by Governor Bagley as an inspector of the Jackson State Prison.[4] Three years later, he was elected to the School Board. He was the Republican candidate for probate judge in 1876, and was defeated by only 45 votes.[4]

Family

Albert Bliss was married at Elyria, December 30, 1835, to Almira J. Beebe, originally from Whitestown, New York.[2] They had five children.[2] He died at Leoni, Michigan, on May 14, 1893.[8]

References

1. Wikoff, Allen T. (1875). Annual report of the secretary of state to the Governor of the state of Ohio for the year 1874. Columbus: Nevins & Myers, State Printers. p. 12.
2. Bliss, John Homer. Genealogy of the Bliss Family in America, from about the year 1550 to 1880. p. 444.
3. Wright, G. Fredrick, ed. (1916). A standard history of Lorain county, Ohio: an authentic narrative ... 1. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co. p. 218.
4. American Biographical History of Eminent and Self-Made Men .. Michigan Volume. Cincinnati: Western Biographical Publishing Co. 1878. p. 117.
5. Taylor, William Alexander; Taylor, Aubrey Clarence (1899). Ohio statesmen and annals of progress: from the year 1788 to the year 1900 ... State of Ohio. pp. 224, 235.
6. Bell, William Jr. (1876). Annual report of the Secretary of State to the Governor and General Assembly for the year 1875... Ohio Secretary of State. p. 114.
7. March 26, 1859 The New York Times
8. "Michigan, Deaths and Burials, 1800-1995 - Albert A. Bliss". FamilySearch.com. Retrieved 2014-03-01.