Benjamin Hardin was a United States Representative from Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

. Martin Davis Hardin

Martin Davis Hardin

Martin Davis Hardin was a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.Martin D. Hardin was born in Jacksonville, Illinois. He was a family friend and protege of Abraham Lincoln...

 was his cousin. He was born at the Georges Creek settlement on the Monongahela River

Monongahela River

The Monongahela River is a river on the Allegheny Plateau in north-central West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States...

, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania

Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 369,993 people, 149,813 households, and 104,569 families residing in the county. The population density was 361 people per square mile . There were 161,058 housing units at an average density of 157 per square mile...

 and then moved with his parents to Washington County, Kentucky

Washington County, Kentucky

Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 10,916. Its county seat is Springfield. The county is named for George Washington. Washington County was the first county formed in the Commonwealth of Kentucky when it reached statehood...

 in 1788. Hardin attended the schools of Nelson and Washington Counties, Kentucky before studying law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

. He was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 in 1806 and commenced practice in Elizabethtown and Bardstown, Nelson County, Kentucky

Nelson County, Kentucky

Nelson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2010, the population was 43,437. Its county seat is Bardstown. The county is part of the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY–IN Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...

 and he settled in Bardstown, Kentucky

Bardstown, Kentucky

As of the census of 2010, there were 11,700 people, 4,712 households, and 2,949 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,113 housing units at an average density of...

 in 1808.

Hardin was a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives

Kentucky House of Representatives

The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a House district, except when necessary to preserve...

 in 1810, 1811, 1824, and 1825 and served in the Kentucky Senate

Kentucky Senate

The Kentucky Senate is the upper house of the Kentucky General Assembly. The Kentucky Senate is composed of 38 members elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. There are no term limits for Kentucky Senators...

 1828–1832. He was elected as a Republican to the Fourteenth Congress (March 4, 1815 – March 3, 1817) and reelected as a Republican to the Sixteenth

16th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:During this congress, one House seat was added for the new state of Alabama and one seat was reapportioned from Massachusetts to the new state of Maine. For the beginning of the next congress, six more seats from Massachusetts would be reapportioned to...

 and Seventeenth Congresses

17th United States Congress

The Seventeenth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1821 to March 3, 1823, during the fifth and sixth...

 (March 4, 1819 – March 3, 1823). He was elected as an Anti-Jacksonian to the Twenty-third

23rd United States Congress

-House of Representatives:For the beginning of this congress, the size of the House was increased from 213 seats to 240 seats, following the 1830 United States Census .- Leadership :- Senate :* President: Martin Van Buren...

 and Twenty-fourth Congresses

24th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:During this congress one House seat was added for each of the new states of Arkansas and Michigan.-Leadership:- Senate :* President: Martin Van Buren * President pro tempore: William R. King - House of Representatives :...

 (March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1837).

After leaving Congress, Hardin served as the Secretary of State of Kentucky

Secretary of State of Kentucky

The Secretary of State of Kentucky is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is now an elected office, but was an appointed office prior to 1891. The current Secretary of State is Democrat Elaine Walker, who was appointed by Governor Steve Beshear to fulfill the...

 1844–1847. He served as a member of the Kentucky constitutional convention in 1849. He died in Bardstown, Kentucky in 1852 and was buried in the family burying ground near Springfield, Kentucky

Springfield, Kentucky

Springfield is a city in and county seat of Washington County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,634 at the 2000 census. It was established in 1793 and probably named for springs in the area.-Geography:...

.