Milton Y. Kidd
MSA SC 3520-12514
Secretary, 1867 Constitutional Convention
Milton Y. Kidd was born in Cecil County, Maryland in 1826.1 In the 1850 Census, at age 24, he is listed as a merchant.2 By the 1860 census he is listed as a lawyer, with property worth $2,000 and an estate worth $300. His mother and several siblings were living with him at that time.3
He served as a delegate to the state legislature from Cecil County in 1849, 1854, and 1858.4 He also served as Clerk of the House of Delegates for at least the 1861 session.
In September of 1861 the Maryland Legislature was holding a special session to vote on succession. The federal government acted to prevent this vote and arrested several members of the legislature in Baltimore on September 12th and 13th. This made it very difficult to have enough members to reach a quorum. The legislature continued to meet for several days hoping to gather enough members. On the 19th of September the federal government sent a squad of Baltimore police to arrest the officers of the legislature and especially the clerks, since they were keeping the legislative machine organized. As reported in The Baltimore Sun "The first occupant of the guard-house was the clerk of the House, Milton Y. Kidd." He was released within a week, after subscribing to a special oath of allegiance.5
He served as the Secretary for the 1867 Constitutional Convention.6 He died on February 2, 1884 at age 57 in Baltimore.7
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