Amos Kendall
| Amos Kendall | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 8th United States Postmaster General | |
|
In office May 1, 1835 – May, 1840 |
|
| President |
Andrew Jackson Martin Van Buren |
| Preceded by | William T. Barry |
| Succeeded by | John Milton Niles |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
August 16, 1789 Dunstable, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | November 12, 1869 (aged 80) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Woolfolk (d. 1823), Jane Kyle |
| Alma mater | Dartmouth College |
| Profession | Politician |
| Religion | Baptist |
Amos Kendall (August 16, 1789 – November 12, 1869) was an American lawyer, journalist and politician. He rose to prominence as editor-in-chief of the Argus of Western America, an influential newspaper in Frankfort, the capital of the U.S. state of Kentucky. He used his newspaper, writing skills, and extensive political contacts to build the Democratic Party into a national political power. An ardent supporter of Andrew Jackson, he served as United States Postmaster General during the Jackson and Martin Van Buren administrations. He was one of the most influential members of Jackson's "Kitchen Cabinet", an unofficial group of Jackson's top appointees and advisors who set administration policy. Returning to private life, Kendall invested heavily in Samuel Morse's new invention, the telegraph. He became one of the most important figures in the transformation of the American news media in the 19th century.
Amos Kendall was born in Dunstable, Massachusetts, on August 16, 1787. He was the sixth child of Zebedee and Molly (Dakin) Kendall. The Kendalls were English Americans who emigrated to Massachusetts from England in 1640. The Kendalls were prominent landowners in the town of Dunstable, and quite numerous. Members of his family owned the tavern where elections and town meetings were held, were elected town selectmen, and served on the committee of correspondence (the shadow-government which mobilized anti-British sentiment prior to the American Revolutionary War). Molly Kendall gave birth to six more children after Amos, but only two of them lived past the age of six.
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