| Date | Event |
|---|
| 1785, Mar. 23 | Born, Culpeper County, Va. |
| 1793 | Attended Fredericksburg Academy, Fredericksburg, Va. |
| 1798-1800 | Attended College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Va. |
| 1805 | Admitted to the Virginia bar 1809 Married Page White (died 1812) |
| 1809-1821 | Representative, Virginia House of Delegates |
| 1812-1844 | Elected quadrennially to “Richmond Junto” |
| 1812-1815 | Served in Virginia militia during War of 1812 |
| 1816 | Married Sarah Coles (died 1848) |
| 1821-1834 | Served in U.S. House of Representatives |
| 1827-1834 | Speaker, U.S. House of Representatives |
| 1835 | Chairman, National Democratic Convention |
| 1836-1841 | U.S. minister to Great Britain |
| 1841-1857 | Active in Virginia politics and in the affairs of the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va. |
| 1849 | Married Mary Schaff |
| 1857, Jan. 18 | Died at “Blenheim,” Albemarle County Va. |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 1812, Mar. 4 | Born, Richmond, Va. |
| 1828-1829 | Attended Hampden-Sydney College, Hampden-Sydney,. Va. |
| 1829–1832 | Attended University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va. |
| 1833, circa | Admitted to the bar, Vicksburg, Miss. |
| 1841 | Began law practice, Covington, Ky. |
| 1842 | Married Sibella Winston |
| 1845-1850 | Representative from Kenton County, Kentucky state legislature |
| 1857-1861 | Served in U.S. House of Representatives |
| 1867, Aug. | Elected lieutenant governor of Kentucky |
| 1867, Sept.-1871 | Governor of Kentucky |
| 1871-1877 | U.S. senator from Kentucky |
| 1877 | Resumed law practice and accepted a position to teach criminal law and contracts at Cincinnati Law School, Cincinnati, Ohio |
| 1880 | Chairman, National Democratic Convention |
| 1884 | Elected president, American Bar Association |
| 1886, Aug. 10 | Died, Covington, Ky. |
