Norton was born in
Mount Vernon, Ohio to Daniel Sheldon and Sarah Sheldon (née Banning). He had a brother,
Anthony Banning Norton, who also became a politician. He attended
Kenyon College but left school to serve with the 2nd Ohio Volunteers in the
Mexican–American War. After returning from the war he studied law under his brother-in-law Judge Rollin C. Hurd. For several years he moved to
California and
Nicaragua but he returned to Ohio in 1852 and was
admitted to the bar shortly thereafter. He practiced law in Mount Vernon for several years before he moving to
Minnesota Territory in 1855. After initially living in
St. Paul, Minnesota, Norton eventually settled in
Winona, Minnesota. In 1857 Norton was elected to the Minnesota State Senate for its first legislative session. He was reelected in 1860 and 1863 serving four total terms in seven years. In 1865 the state legislature elected him to the US Senate where he served in the
39th and
40th congresses. Initially elected as a
Unionist, Norton later aligned himself with the more moderate Republican faction in the senate. He supported President
Andrew Johnson's stance on
reconstruction and opposed his
impeachment. This led to tension with the more radical Republicans of Minnesota who passed a resolution censuring Norton for his actions and calling for his resignation. Norton died while in office on July 14, 1870, having suffered for several weeks from
tuberculosis. He was buried in
Green Mount Cemetery. ==See also==