On this date, Missourians selected Thomas Hart Benton along with David Barton to represent them in the US. Senate. Benton was born in Neosho and later lived in Kansas City, while Barton relocated from the Southeast to the St. Louis area and, toward the end of his life, lived in Boonville. Sources: Missouri Senate, Historic Artists’ Homes & Studios, and Missouri Encyclopedia.

Photo credit: Brady, Mathew B., Approximately. Thomas Hart Benton, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing front. [Between 1844 and 1858] Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/2004663877/.