Elbridge Gerry (1744-1814), Philanthropic Lodge of Marblehead, Massachusetts, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, fifth Vice President of the US, Governor of Massachusetts, a congressman, a delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and more. He is mainly remembered, however, for his efforts to redistrict Massachusetts in an attempt to keep Republicans in power, a tactic which political parties have employed since. His actions sparked such controversy at the time that his contemporary pundits named the process after him: Gerrymandering.
