Jackson was born on May 12, 1796, in
Madison County, Kentucky, to John Jackson and Mary Forrest (
née Hancock) Jackson. He was part of a large political family, with
The Political Graveyard naming him a member of the "
Breathitt-
Sappington-
Jackson family" of Kentucky and Missouri. On March 8, 1821, he married Ursula Oldham; Jackson and his wife moved to Missouri in 1821, living in
Howard County until 1822, moving to then-unincorporated
Randolph County. A
Democrat, he served two terms as sheriff of Randolph County, beginning in 1829. After the war, Jackson returned to Missouri and was a member of the
Missouri Senate from 1851 to 1855. He was
Lieutenant Governor of Missouri from January 5 to February 27, 1857, under
Trusten Polk. Following Polk's resignation as
Governor to join the
United States Senate, Jackson assume the position and served from February 27 to October 22, 1857. He was succeeded by
Robert Marcellus Stewart, who he served as Lieutenant Governor under, from October 22, 1857, to January 3, 1861. He ran for Governor in 1860, losing to Claiborne Fox Jackson. Politically, he supported
states' rights and the
Confederate States of America in their secession. After serving as Lieutenant Governor, Jackson was a member of the
United States Marshals Service and headed the Western District of Missouri, from 1860 to until his resignation in 1861, following the election of President
Abraham Lincoln. Afterward, he lived in
Salem, Oregon. He died on March 19, 1876, aged 79, in Salem, and is buried in the
Salem Pioneer Cemetery. ==References==