Joseph Ritner (25 March 1780-16 October 1869) was the Anti-Masonic Governor of Pennsylvania from 15 December 1835 to 15 January 1839, succeeding George Wolf and preceding David R. Porter.
Biography[]
Joseph Ritner was born in Reading, Pennsylvania in 1780, the son of German parents. He was raised in Cumberland County before opening a farm in Washington County, and he commanded a militia company during the War of 1812. He served in the State House from 1820 to 1826 as a Democratic-Republican, and he joined the Anti-Masonic Party in 1828 and was an active member until 1839, before being involved with the Whigs from 1839 to 1854 and the Republican Party from 1854 to 1869. He served as Governor from 1835 to 1839, gave the Second Bank of the United States a state charter after its defeat in the Bank War, supported public schooling, supported the anti-slavery movement, used public rail and canal projects as a source of patronage, served as a delegate to the 1856 Republican National Convention, and died in 1869.