John R. Eden
American politician
title: "John R. Eden" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1826-births", "1909-deaths", "illinois-lawyers", "people-of-illinois-in-the-american-civil-war", "democratic-party-united-states-representatives-from-illinois", "people-from-bath-county,-kentucky", "people-from-sullivan,-illinois", "19th-century-united-states-representatives"] description: "American politician" topic_path: "law" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_R._Eden" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary American politician ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox officeholder"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | John R. Eden |
| image | JREden.jpg |
| state1 | Illinois |
| district1 | |
| term_start1 | March 4, 1885 |
| term_end1 | March 3, 1887 |
| predecessor1 | Samuel W. Moulton |
| successor1 | Edward Lane |
| state2 | Illinois |
| district2 | |
| term_start2 | March 4, 1873 |
| term_end2 | March 3, 1879 |
| predecessor2 | District created |
| successor2 | Albert P. Forsythe |
| state3 | Illinois |
| district3 | |
| term_start3 | March 4, 1863 |
| term_end3 | March 3, 1865 |
| predecessor3 | James Carroll Robinson |
| successor3 | Henry P. H. Bromwell |
| resting_place | Greenhill Cemetery |
| birth_date | |
| birth_place | Bath County, Kentucky, U.S. |
| death_date | |
| death_place | Sullivan, Illinois, U.S. |
| party | Democratic |
| :: |
|name = John R. Eden |image = JREden.jpg |caption = |state1 = Illinois |district1 = |term_start1 = March 4, 1885 |term_end1 = March 3, 1887 |predecessor1 = Samuel W. Moulton |successor1 = Edward Lane |state2 = Illinois |district2 = |term_start2 = March 4, 1873 |term_end2 = March 3, 1879 |predecessor2 = District created |successor2 = Albert P. Forsythe |state3 = Illinois |district3 = |term_start3 = March 4, 1863 |term_end3 = March 3, 1865 |predecessor3 = James Carroll Robinson |successor3 = Henry P. H. Bromwell |resting_place = Greenhill Cemetery |birth_date = |birth_place = Bath County, Kentucky, U.S. |death_date = |death_place = Sullivan, Illinois, U.S. |party = Democratic
John Rice Eden (February 1, 1826 – June 9, 1909) was an American lawyer and politician who a total of five terms served as a U.S. Representative from Illinois during three non-consecutive stints between 1863 and 1887.
Early life and career
Born in Bath County, Kentucky, Eden moved with his parents to Indiana. He attended public schools, and later studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1853 at Shelbyville, Illinois and commenced practice in Sullivan, Illinois.
He served as prosecuting attorney for the seventeenth judicial district of Illinois 1856–1860.
Congress
Eden was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-eighth Congress (March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1865). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1864 to the Thirty-ninth Congress. He was an unsuccessful Democratic nominee for Governor of Illinois in 1868.
Eden was elected to the Forty-third, Forty-fourth, and Forty-fifth Congresses (March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1879). He served as chairman of the Committee on War Claims (Forty-fourth and Forty-fifth Congresses). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1878. He resumed the practice of law in Sullivan, Illinois.
Eden was elected to the Forty-ninth Congress (March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1887). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1886.
Later career and death
He again engaged in the practice of law.
He died in Sullivan, Illinois, June 9, 1909. He was interred in Greenhill Cemetery.
References
state=Illinois| district=7 | before=James C. Robinson | after=Henry P. H. Bromwell | years=1863-1865 state=Illinois| district=15 | before=District created | after=Albert P. Forsythe | years=1873-1879 state=Illinois| district=17 | before=Samuel W. Moulton | after=Edward Lane | years=1885-1887
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