Samuel Lathrop was born on May 1, 1772, on the western side of Springfield (which would later be incorporated as a separate town in 1774) in the Province of Massachusetts Bay.
He was the son of Reverend Joseph Lathrop, longtime pastor of the First Church of West Springfield.
Lathrop served as West Springfield's clerk and treasurer from 1796 to 1798, and was town meeting moderator eight years.
He served as chairman of the Committee on Revisal and Unfinished Business (Seventeenth and Eighteenth Congresses).
This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress