John Truman Stoddert
John Truman Stoddert (October 1, 1790 – July 19, 1870) was an American politician from Maryland. He was born at Smith Point in Nanjemoy, Maryland, the son of William Truman Stoddert and Sally Massey. He graduated from Princeton College in 1810 and studied law at Litchfield Law School and in Annapolis with Judge Alexander C. Magruder. He practiced law in Charles County and served as a major in the War of 1812, working as an aide-de-camp to Philip Stuart.
Stoddert held several public offices in Maryland. He served in the Maryland House of Delegates in 1815–1816 and again in 1820, and was a Maryland senate elector in 1826. He represented Maryland's 8th district in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Jacksonian Democrat from March 4, 1833 to March 3, 1835; after his term, the seat was abolished. He also took part in the Maryland Constitutional Convention of 1867. After leaving Congress, he farmed at his estate. He was a slave owner.
In his personal life, he married Elizabeth Gwynn on May 23, 1815, and they had two daughters, Mary and Elizabeth. He was the great-nephew of William Smallwood. He later moved to Baltimore and died on July 19, 1870 at his family estate, Wicomico House, at West Hatton Estate in Charles County, Maryland, while visiting there. He was buried at Wicomico House.
This page was last edited on 1 February 2026, at 23:30 (CET).