LYON, Matthew, American politician: b. Wicklow County, Ireland, 1746; d. Spadra Bluff, Ark., 1 Aug. 1822. He went to New York in 1755, and, being too poor to pay for his passage, was bound out by the captain of the ship to a farmer in Connecticut, in whose service he re mained a number of years. Subsequently he be came a citizen of Vermont, and in July 1776 was commissioned as lieutenant in one of the companies of Mountain boys?' He served later as commissary-general, and even tually rose to the rank of colonel of militia. He was one of the founders of Fairhaven (1783), where he engaged in paper-making, iron casting and other occupations, and at one time edited a newspaper of an ultra-democratic character, en titled The Scourge of Aristocracy and Repos itory of Important Political Truth, of which the types and paper were manufactured by him self. Becoming an active political leader, he was elected in 1797 to Congress by the Anti Federal party. In October 1798 he was con victed of a libel on President Adams, and im prisoned for four months, a fine of $1,000 which had also been imposed upon him being paid by his friends. An attempt to expel him from Congress as a convicted felon failed for want of a two-thirds vote. During this Congressional
term he had a violent altercation on the floor of the House with Roswell Griswold of Connecti cut, ending in blows; but the motion to expel them was defeated. In 1799, while a prisoner, he was re-elected to Congress from Vermont. After the expiration of his term he removed to Kentucky, where at the next Congressional election (1803) he was returned to the House, of which he continued a member until 1811. Subsequently he held the office of United States factor for the Cherokee Indians by the appoint ment of President Monroe and removed to Ar kansas, of which he was the territorial delegate elect to Congress at the time of his death. Though rough and impetuous in manner, he was an able debater, and to the end of his life continued a man of active business habits. He built gunboats on speculation during the War of 1812 and lost his fortune in the venture.
Consult Bassett, J. S., The Federalist System' New York 1906) ; Charming, Edward, The Jeffersonian System' (ib. 1906) ; McLaughlin, (Matthew Lyon, the Hampden of Congress: A Biography' (ib. 1900).