Mordecai Baldwin Oliver (October 22, 1819 – April 25, 1898) was an attorney and two-term U.S. Representative from Missouri from 1853 to 1857.

Mordecai Baldwin Oliver
Secretary of State of Missouri
In office
1861–1865
GovernorHamilton Rowan Gamble
Willard Preble Hall
Preceded byBenjamin Franklin Massey
Succeeded byFrancis A. Rodman
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 4th district
In office
March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1857
Preceded byWillard P. Hall
Succeeded byJames Craig
Personal details
BornOctober 22, 1819
Anderson County, Kentucky
DiedApril 25, 1898 (aged 78)
Springfield, Missouri
NationalityAmerican

Biography

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Born in Anderson County, Kentucky, Oliver attended the common schools and then studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1842 and commenced practice in Richmond, Missouri. He served as a prosecuting attorney for the Fifth Judicial Circuit in 1848.

Congress

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Oliver was elected as a Whig to the Thirty-third Congress and reelected as an Opposition Party candidate to the Thirty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1853–March 3, 1857).

Later career

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Oliver was elected as a Unionist Secretary of State of Missouri in 1861.

He resumed the practice of law in St. Louis, Missouri, and served as judge of the criminal court from 1889 to 1893.

Death and burial

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He moved to Springfield, Missouri, where he died April 25, 1898. He was interred in Hazelwood Cemetery.

References

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  • United States Congress. "Mordecai Oliver (id: O000075)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 4th congressional district

1853–1857
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by
Benjamin Franklin Massey
Missouri Secretary of State
1861–1865
Succeeded by
Francis A. Rodman