Ebenezer Young

Ebenezer Young (December 25, 1783 – August 18, 1851) was a United States representative from Connecticut and a prominent early nineteenth-century lawyer, manufacturer, and state legislator. He was born in Killingly, Windham County, Connecticut, where he spent much of his life and built his professional and political career during a period of significant economic and political change in New England.

Young pursued a classical education and graduated from Yale College in 1806, joining the ranks of Yale-educated lawyers who would play influential roles in the civic life of Connecticut and the early republic. After completing his studies at Yale, he read law, was admitted to the bar, and commenced the practice of law in Danielson, a village within the town of Killingly. In addition to his legal practice, he became involved in local industry, engaging in the manufacture of cloth at East Killingly, Connecticut, reflecting the region’s early transition from an agrarian to a more industrial and commercial economy.

Young entered public life as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives, to which he was elected as a Federalist in 1810, 1811, 1816, and 1817. His repeated elections during this era of Federalist influence in New England indicate a growing reputation in local and state affairs. As the Federalist Party declined nationally after the War of 1812, Young remained active in state politics, adapting to the evolving party landscape while continuing to represent the interests of his constituents in northeastern Connecticut.

Advancing in state government, Young served in the Connecticut Senate from 1823 to 1825, participating in the upper chamber during a period when the state was consolidating its legal and institutional frameworks following the adoption of the Connecticut Constitution of 1818. He then returned to the Connecticut House of Representatives from 1826 to 1828. During this latter service he was chosen speaker of the House in 1827 and 1828, a position that underscored his standing among his legislative colleagues and placed him at the center of deliberations on state policy, finance, and internal improvements.

Young was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a Connecticut at-large representative to the Twenty-first, Twenty-second, and Twenty-third Congresses, serving from March 4, 1829, to March 3, 1835. His tenure in Congress coincided with the presidency of Andrew Jackson and the rise of the Second Party System, a time of intense national debates over issues such as the Bank of the United States, tariffs, and federal expenditures. During the Twenty-second Congress he served as chairman of the Committee on Expenditures on Public Buildings, where he was responsible for overseeing and reviewing federal spending related to public structures, an important function in an era of expanding federal presence in the capital and other key locations.

After leaving Congress in 1835, Young returned to Connecticut, where he resumed his legal and business pursuits and remained a respected figure in his community. He continued to reside in the Killingly area, which had been the center of his professional, political, and industrial activities throughout his life. Ebenezer Young died in West Killingly, Connecticut, on August 18, 1851. He was interred in Westfield Cemetery in Danielson, Connecticut, bringing to a close a career that linked local industry, state leadership, and national legislative service during the formative decades of the United States.