View source for Asa Lyon

{{short description|American politician}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name         = Asa Lyon
| image        = Asa Lyon (Vermont Congressman).jpg
| jr/sr        =
| term_start   =
| term_end     = S
| preceded     =
| succeeded    =
| order1       = Member of the <br>[[United States House of Representatives]] <br>from [[Vermont]]'s [[Vermont's At-large congressional district|At-large]] district
| term_start1  = March 4, 1815
| term_end1    = March 3, 1817
| predecessor1 = [[Charles Rich (U.S. Representative)|Charles Rich]]
| successor1   = [[Heman Allen (of Colchester)|Heman Allen]]
| order2       =
| term_start2  =
| term_end2    =
| predecessor2 =
| successor2   =
| office3      =
| state3       =
| district3    =
| term_start3  =
| term_end3    =
| preceded3    =
| succeeded3   =
| office4      = Member of the [[Vermont House of Representatives]]
| term4        = 1799-1802<br>1804-1806<br>1808
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|1763|12|31|mf=y}}
| birth_place  = [[Pomfret, Connecticut|Pomfret]], [[Connecticut Colony]], [[British America]] |
| death_date   = {{Death date and age|1841|4|4|1763|12|31|mf=y}}
| death_place  = [[South Hero, Vermont]], U.S. |
| state        = [[Vermont]]
| spouse       = Esther Newell Lyon
| children     = Esther Lyon, Abigail Lyon and Newell Lyon
| profession   = [[Politician]], [[Pastor]]
| alma_mater   = [[Dartmouth College]]
| party        = [[Federalist Party (United States)|Federalist]]
}}
'''Asa Lyon''' (December 31, 1763{{spnd}}April 4, 1841) was an American politician. He served as a [[United States representative]] from [[Vermont]].
==Biography==
Lyon was born in [[Pomfret, Connecticut|Pomfret]] in the [[Connecticut Colony]] to Jonathan Lyon and Rebecca Maxley Lyon. He attended the common schools. He graduated from [[Dartmouth College]] in 1790.<ref>{{cite book|last=Gilman|first=Marcus Davis|title=The bibliography of Vermont|year=1897|publisher=Free press association|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_T1I0AAAAMAAJ/page/n168 157]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_T1I0AAAAMAAJ|quote=asa lyon born in Pomfret, Connecticut.}}</ref> He was a [[divinity]] student with the Reverend [[Charles Backus]] in [[Somers, Connecticut]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Packard|first=Theophilus|title=A history of the churches and ministers: and of Franklin Association, in Franklin County, Mass., and an appendix respecting the county|year=1854|publisher=S.K. Whipple|pages=[https://archive.org/details/ahistorychurche00packgoog/page/n390 374]|url=https://archive.org/details/ahistorychurche00packgoog|quote=asa lyon born in Pomfret, Connecticut.}}</ref> Lyon was ordained the pastor of the [[Congregational church|Congregational Church]] in [[Sunderland, Massachusetts]], in 1792.<ref>{{cite book|last=Chapman|first=George Thomas|title=Sketches of the alumni of Dartmouth college: from the first graduation in 1771 to the present time, with a brief history of the institution|year=1867|publisher=Riverside press|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_sju7AAAAIAAJ/page/n57 55]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_sju7AAAAIAAJ|quote=asa lyon born in Pomfret, Connecticut.}}</ref> He moved to [[South Hero, Vermont]], in 1794 where he studied law.  Lyon was also a tutor, and among his students was [[Herman R. Beardsley]], who later served as a Justice of the [[Vermont Supreme Court]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Sowles |first=Edward A. |date=October 21, 1890 |title=Memorial Sketch of Herman R. Beardsley in Proceedings of the Vermont Bar Association |volume=II, 5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DGQDAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA310 |location=Barre, VT |publisher=Thomas H. Cave, Book and Job Printer |pages=310–313 |ref={{sfnRef|''Memorial Sketch of Herman R. Beardsley''}}}}</ref>
Lyon was a member of the [[Vermont House of Representatives]] from 1799 until 1802, 1804 until 1806 and 1808. He was a member of the Vermont Executive Council in 1808.<ref>{{cite book|last=United States Congress|title=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005|year=2005|publisher=Government Printing Office|pages=1481|isbn=9780160731761|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v9MBIctdjjkC&q=asa+lyon+born+in+Pomfret%2C+Connecticut&pg=PA1481}}</ref> Lyon was a town representative in Grande Isle from 1810 until 1813.<ref>{{cite book|last=Hemenway|first=Abby Maria|title=The Vermont Historical Gazetteer: A Magazine, Embracing a History of Each Town, Civil, Ecclesiastical, Biographical and Military, Volume 2|year=1871|publisher=Abby Maria Hemenway|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_eJUbAQAAMAAJ/page/n547 533]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_eJUbAQAAMAAJ|quote=asa lyon Vermont.}}</ref> He organized the church in South Hero and served as its first pastor from 1802 until 1840,<ref name="LyonMemorial">{{cite book|last=Lyons|first=Albert Brown|title=Lyon Memorial: Massachusetts Families, Including Descendants of the Immigrants William Lyon, of Roxbury, Peter Lyon, of Dorchester, George Lyon, of Dorchester, with Intro. Treating of the English Ancestry of the American Families|year=1905|publisher=W. Graham Print. Company|pages=84|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wic3AAAAMAAJ&q=asa+lyon+born+in+Pomfret%2C+Connecticut&pg=PA84}}</ref> and as [[Chief judge (United States)|chief judge]] of [[Grand Isle County, Vermont|Grand Isle County]] Courts from 1805 until 1809, 1813 and 1814.<ref>{{cite book|last=Proctor|first=Redfield|title=Men of Vermont: an illustrated biographical history of Vermonters and sons of Vermont|year=1894|publisher=Transcript publishing company|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_Nvg_AAAAYAAJ/page/n139 142]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_Nvg_AAAAYAAJ|quote=asa lyon born in Pomfret, Connecticut.}}</ref>
He was elected as a [[Federalist Party (United States)|Federalist]] candidate to the [[Fourteenth United States Congress]], serving from March 4, 1815, until March 3, 1817.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/asa_lyon/407023| title =Rep. Asa Lyon| publisher= Govtrack.us|access-date= November 26, 2012}}</ref>
==Family life==
Lyon married Esther Newell Lyon. They had three children, Esther Lyon, Abigail Lyon and Newell Lyon.<ref name="LyonMemorial"/> Lyon was thought to be the [[second-cousin]] of [[Robert Burns]], the Scottish poet and lyricist.<ref>{{cite book|last=Greene|first=Richard Henry|title=The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, Volumes 28-29|year=1897|publisher=New York Genealogical and Biographical Society|pages=79|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jdQUAAAAYAAJ&q=asa+lyon+born+in+Pomfret%2C+Connecticut&pg=PA78}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Lanman|first=Charles|title=Biographical annals of the civil government of the United States: during its first century. From original and official sources|year=1876|publisher=J. Anglim|pages=[https://archive.org/details/biographicalann00lanmgoog/page/n299 267]|url=https://archive.org/details/biographicalann00lanmgoog|quote=Asa Lyon Vermont representative, second cousin of Robert Burns.}}</ref>
==Death==
Lyon died in South Hero on April 4, 1841.<ref name="LyonMemorial"/> He is interred at the Grand Isle Cemetery in [[Grand Isle, Vermont]].<ref name="LyonMemorial"/>
==References==
{{reflist}}
<!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags-->
==Further reading==
* ''"A history of the churches and ministers: and of Franklin Association, in Franklin County, Mass''" by Theophilus Packard, published by S.K. Whipple, 1854.
* ''"Men of Vermont: an illustrated biographical history of Vermonters and sons of Vermont" by Redfield Proctor"'', published by Transcript publishing company, 1894.
==External links==
* [http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=L000539 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress]
* [http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/asa_lyon/407023 Govtrack.us]
* [http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/lyon.html The Political Graveyard]
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{{s-par|us-hs}}
{{US House succession box
| state=Vermont
| district=AL
| before=[[Charles Rich (U.S. Representative)|Charles Rich]]
| years=1815-1817
| after=[[Heman Allen (of Colchester)|Heman Allen]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lyon, Asa}}
[[Category:1763 births]]
[[Category:1841 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Pomfret, Connecticut]]
[[Category:Members of the Vermont House of Representatives]]
[[Category:Dartmouth College alumni]]
[[Category:Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont]]