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Seth Hanchett

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Seth Hanchett
Sheriff of Cook County
In office
1882–1886
Preceded byOrrin L. Mann
Succeeded byCanute R. Matson
Personal details
Born(1841-03-30)March 30, 1841
Chautauqua County, New York
DiedJanuary 6, 1905(1905-01-06) (aged 63)
Rockford, Iowa
NationalityAmerican
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Lizzie T. Atkins
(m. 1867)
Military service
AllegianceUnited States of America
Union
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Union Army
Years of service1861–1862,
1864–1865
RankSergeant
Unit9th Illinois Cavalry Regiment,
15th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment
Battles/warsAmerican Civil War

Seth Hanchett (March 30, 1841 – January 6, 1905) was a Republican lawman and politician in Chicago who served as the Sheriff of Cook County from 1882 to 1886.

Biography

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Born in Chautauqua County, New York in 1841, Hanchett settled in Chicago and entered the employ of the North Chicago City Railway Company in 1860. He enlisted in the 9th Illinois Cavalry Regiment of the Union Army at the outbreak of the American Civil War and was discharged due to illness within a year. Shortly afterward, Hanchett returned to New York and enlisted again. He saw service in the Valley campaigns of 1864 and was severely wounded by artillery fire at the Battle of Five Forks in 1865, resulting in the amputation of his entire left arm at the shoulder.[1]

Upon his return to Chicago after the war, Hanchett was superintendent of the city Soldier's Home and in 1867 was appointed bailiff of the County Court. He maintained his position as bailiff under four successive Cook County Sheriffs until the election of Charles Kern. Hanchett was elected Clerk of the Probate Court in 1877 and in 1882 was the Republican nominee for Sheriff, the office of which he won in a heated election. He served as Sheriff of Cook County until 1886.[1] Hanchett died in Rockford, Iowa in 1905.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b Politics and Politicians of Chicago: Cook County, and Illinois. Memorial Volume, 1787-1887. A Complete Record of Municipal, County, State and National Politics from the Earliest Period to the Present Time. And an Account of the Haymarket Massacre of May 4, 1886, and the Anarchist Trials. Blakely Printing Company. 1886. pp. 540–541.
  2. ^ "Iowa, Grand Army of the Republic Membership Records, 1861-1949," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q23F-BYY1 : 17 March 2018), Seth F Hanchett, 1861-1949; citing Iowa, United States, Military Service, State Historical Department, Des Moines; FHL microfilm 1,205,671.