Canby, Richard S.

Born: 1808-09-30 Lebanon, Ohio

Died: 1895-07-27 Olney, Illinois

Canby attended Miami University, from 1826 to 1828. He engaged in mercantile pursuits while he studied law. He earned admittance to the Ohio bar in 1840 and started a practice in Bellefontaine, Ohio. Canby won election to the Ohio House of Representatives, serving from 1845 to 1846. He won election, as a Whig, to the U.S. House of Representatives, serving from 1847 to 1849, alongside Abraham Lincoln. After his term ended, Canby engaged agricultural pursuits. He remained interested in politics, joining the Republican Party in 1856. Canby moved to Olney in 1863 and resumed practicing law.

Biographical Directory of the American Congress 1774-1996 (Alexandria, VA: CQ Staff Directories, 1997), 776; Gravestone, Haven Hill Cemetery, Olney, IL.