Rufus King Goodenow (1790-1863), brother of Robert Goodenow, was a U.S. Representative born in Henniker, Merrimack County, New Hampshire, April 24, 1790. He moved with his parents to Brownfield in 1802, and received just a limited schooling. He engaged in agricultural pursuits, and also followed the sea, having made several voyages to European ports.
Goodenow served as a captain in the Thirty-third Regiment, United States Infantry, in the War of 1812. He moved to Paris in 1821 and served as clerk of the Oxford County Courts (1821-1837). A member of the Maine House of Representatives in 1837 and 1838, he was also a delegate to the Whig National Convention at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. in 1839.
He studied law; was admitted to the bar and practiced in the courts of Maine. Goodenow was elected as a Whig to the Thirty-first Congress (March 4, 1849-March 3, 1851). He died in Paris on March 24, 1863, with interment in Riverside Cemetery in South Paris.
Additional resources
Congressional Biography if Rufus King Goodenow: https://bioguideretro.congress.gov/Home/MemberDetails?memIndex=G000285 (accessed December 21, 2020)