Cabell Breckiniridge | |
|---|---|
| 14th Secretary of State of Kentucky | |
| In office September 2, 1820 – September 1, 1823 | |
| Governor | John Adair |
| Preceded by | Oliver G. Waggener |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Bell Monroe |
| 12th Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives | |
| In office December 1, 1817 – December 5, 1819 | |
| Preceded by | John J. Crittenden |
| Succeeded by | Martin D. Hardin |
| Member of the Kentucky House of Representatives | |
| In office 1816–1819 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joseph Cabell Breckinridge July 14, 1788 Albemarle County, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | September 1, 1823 (aged 35) Frankfort, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic-Republican |
| Spouse | Mary Clay Smith |
| Relations | John Breckinridge (father); Breckinridge family |
| Children | 6, including John C. Breckinridge |
| Alma mater | College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Rank | Major |
| Battles/wars | War of 1812 |
Joseph Cabell Breckinridge (July 14, 1788 – September 1, 1823) was an American lawyer, soldier, slaveholder and politician in Kentucky. From 1816 to 1819, he represented Fayette County in the Kentucky House of Representatives, and fellow members elected him as their speaker (1817 to 1819). In 1820, Governor John Adair appointed Breckinridge Kentucky Secretary of State, and he served until his death.
A member of the Breckinridge political family, he was the son of Virginia (then Kentucky) lawyer, Senator, and U.S. Attorney General John Breckinridge (1760–1806) and his wife Mary Hopkins Cabell Breckinridge (1769–1858), of another distinguished political family. Their son John C. Breckinridge would follow his father's (and grandfather's) path into law and politics and rise to become Vice President of the United States.
After graduating from Princeton University, Breckinridge intended to follow his late father's example by becoming a lawyer in Lexington, Kentucky, but first enlisted for service in the War of 1812. Soon after the war, he also began his political career by winning election to the Kentucky House of Representatives, where he led an unsuccessful attempt to oust Governor Gabriel Slaughter, who had ascended to the governorship upon George Madison's death. Breckinridge served as Speaker of the Kentucky House from 1817 to 1819. In 1820, he accepted Governor Adair's appointment as Secretary of State and moved to Frankfort, the state capital, to better attend to official duties, but fell ill with a fever in August 1823 and died on September 1, 1823.