Info added per the DAR's "Lineage Book of the Charter Members" by Mary S Lockwood published 1895 showing "a soldier in the Revolution at 15 years of age, with Mad Anthony Wayne in '96, a major general in 1812, and governor of Kentuck in 1825." This DAR info contradicts Wikipedia info shown below.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Desha

9th Governor of Kentucky

Joseph Desha (December 9, 1768 – October 11, 1842) was a U.S. Representative and the ninth Governor of Kentucky. Desha was the first Kentucky governor not to have served in the Revolutionary War.[1] He did, however, serve under William Henry Harrison and "Mad" Anthony Wayne in the Northwest Indian War, and lost two brothers in battle. He married in 1789 and returned to Kentucky in 1792, settling in Mason County. There he began his political career, serving in both houses of the Kentucky General Assembly. In 1807, he began the first of six consecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. A Democratic-Republican, he joined his party in supporting the War of 1812. Desha himself volunteered to serve in the war and commanded a division at the Battle of the Thames.

In 1824, Desha ran for governor on a platform of debt relief and won a landslide victory. His term was marred by numerous controversies. Chief among these was the Old Court-New Court controversy, a move by the legislature to abolish the Kentucky Court of Appeals, which was hostile to their debt relief agenda, and replace it with a more sympathetic court. For a time, two courts of last resort existed in the state, but the old court was eventually restored, albeit over Desha's veto. Another contentious issue during Desha's tenure was Horace Holley's presidency of Transylvania University. Many in the state felt that Holley was too liberal and when Desha joined in the criticism, Holley resigned. Also during his term, Desha's son Isaac was convicted of murder, despite the political intervention of his father. Following the conviction, the younger Desha unsuccessfully attempted suicide. Governor Desha then issued a controversial pardon for his son.

Desha did not approve of the election of Thomas Metcalfe to succeed him, and for a time, he threatened not to vacate the governor's mansion. Following his term as governor, Desha retired from public life. He and his wife moved in with their son, and Desha died at his son's residence on October 11, 1842.