Where the Streets All Have Names: Kendall Street

Amos Kendall (Photo by Mathew Brady – National Archives)

Originally named Taylor or just K Street, the 11th north to south road west of Sheridan was renamed Kendall Street in 1903 to reflect the new U.S. Senators and Supreme Court justices alphabet naming system, despite the fact that Amos Kendall never served as either. Instead, Kendall served in Andrew Jackson’s “Kitchen Cabinet” as Postmaster General and was considered Jackson’s right hand man.

Amos Kendall was born in 1789 to a large and prominent Massachusetts family. A sickly child, Kendall’s days were spent working the family farm and attending various early public schools. In 1808 Kendall began his college education at Dartmouth. While at Dartmouth, he attracted the ire of his peers, as the consumption of alcohol was banned on campus after Kendall had circulated a pamphlet calling for the same. The experience left Kendall with the belief that he should not be imposing his own morals on others. Kendall graduated at the top of his class from Dartmouth in 1811.

After college, Kendall briefly tried his hand at teaching, but quickly pivoted towards a career in law. Kendall also enthusiastically joined the local militia, following in his fathers footsteps, but his sickliness persisted and eventually it was determined he was unable to perform his duties.

In 1814, Kendall was hired by Kentucky Senator Jesse Bledsoe to tutor his children, and Kendall embarked on a month long journey to Lexington. Unfortunately, upon his arrival, the Bledsoe family had apparently not been informed of his hiring, and refused to allow Kendall into their home. He vowed to have nothing to do with the family. Instead, he was hired by the family of Speaker of the House Henry Clay to teach their children.

The Clay children proved to be exceptionally difficult, prone to temper tantrums, with one even showing violent tendencies. Kendall swore off teaching and instead obtained his law license from the State of Kentucky and opened a practice in Georgetown. Soon after, Kendall became the editor-in-chief for Georgetown Minerva, the local newspaper. For the next 14 years, Amos Kendall worked in various capacities for several newspapers.

In 1829, Kendall moved to Washington D.C., having been appointed as an auditor for the U.S. Treasury. He quickly discovered evidence of embezzlement by his predecessor at the Treasury, leading to a high profile trial at the behest of President Andrew Jackson. Kendall soon was part of Jackson’s Kitchen Cabinet, an informal group of advisors. Kendall quickly became Jackson’s most trusted man, contributing many ideas about government and policy that earned President Jackson a reputation as an intellectual. Kendall also helped to draft all five of Jackson’s annual statements to Congress.

In 1835, President Jackson appointed Kendall as the Postmaster General, a position he would hold for the next 5 years. After leaving government service, Kendall continued to be active in politics and journalism, serving as a key advisor to several Democratic presidential candidates. He also wrote extensively on political and economic issues, and was a vocal opponent of slavery in the years leading up to the Civil War. He passed away after a lengthy illness in 1869.