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Reuben Fenton

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"Senator Fenton" redirects here. For other uses, seeSenator Fenton (disambiguation).
Reuben Eaton Fenton
22ndGovernor of New York
In office
January 1, 1865 – December 31, 1868
LieutenantThomas G. Alvord
Stewart Woodford
Preceded byHoratio Seymour
Succeeded byJohn T. Hoffman
United States Senator
from New York
In office
March 4, 1869 – March 3, 1875
Preceded byEdwin D. Morgan
Succeeded byFrancis Kernan
Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives
from New York
In office
March 4, 1857 – December 20, 1864
Preceded byFrancis S. Edwards
Succeeded byHenry Van Aernam
Constituency33rd district(1857–63)
31st district(1863–64)
In office
March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855
Preceded byAugustus P. Hascall
Succeeded byFrancis S. Edwards
Constituency33rd district
Personal details
Born(1819-07-04)July 4, 1819
Carroll, New York,U.S.
DiedAugust 25, 1885(1885-08-25)(aged 66)
Jamestown, New York,U.S.
Political partyDemocratic(before 1857)
Republican(1857–72, 1873–85)
Liberal Republican(1872–73)
Spouses
Jane Frew
​
​
(m.1840; died 1842)​
Elizabeth Scudder
​
​
(m.1844)​
Children4
EducationCary's Academy
Fredonia Academy
OccupationAttorney
businessman

Reuben Eaton Fenton(July 4, 1819 – August 25, 1885) was an American merchant and politician from New York. In the mid-19th century, he served as aU.S. Representative,aU.S. Senator,and as Governor of New York.

Early life

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Gubernatorial portrait of New York Governor Reuben E. Fenton.

Fenton was born nearFrewsburg,inChautauqua County, New York,on July 4, 1819.[1]He was the son of a farmer, and schoolteacher, George Washington Fenton (1783–1860) and Elsey (née Owen) Fenton (1790–1875).[2]He had four siblings: Roswell Owen Fenton, George Washington Fenton Jr., William H.H. Fenton, and John Freeman Fenton.[3]

His paternal grandparents were Roswell Fenton and Deborah (née Freeman) Fenton and his maternal grandfather was John Owen ofCarroll, New York.[3]His paternal aunt, Hannah Fenton was the wife of Lambert Van Buren ofKinderhook, New York.[4]

He was educated in the district school,Cary's AcademynearCincinnati,Ohio, and theFredonia Academy.[5]

Career

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In 1840, he was named commander of theNew York Militia's 162nd Infantry Regiment with the rank ofcolonel.He became a lumber merchant, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1841.[6]Fenton entered politics as aDemocrat.He wasTown SupervisorofCarrollfrom 1843 to 1850.[7]

U.S. House of Representatives

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He was elected as a Democrat to the33rd United States Congress,and served from March 4, 1853, to March 3, 1855. In his first term in Congress, Fenton strongly opposed theKansas-Nebraska Actof 1854 and unsuccessfully tried to persuade PresidentFranklin Pierceand U.S. Secretary of StateWilliam L. Marcyto oppose the bill. He was defeated for re-election that year. He left the Democratic Party to help organize the Republican Party,[6]and was later elected, as aRepublican,to the35th,36th,37thand38th United States Congresses,and served from 1857 to 1865. During the 36th Congress, he served on theCommittee on Invalid Pensionsand in the 37th Congress, he served on theCommittee on Claims.[7]He served a total of five terms as congressman.

Governor of New York

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He was theGovernor of New Yorkfrom 1865 to 1868, elected in1864and1866."During his tenure, Cornell University was founded; a free public school system was initiated; and relief measures were sanctioned that benefited veterans."[8]After serving two terms as governor, Fenton lost the November 1868 election toJohn T. Hoffman,aTammany-backed Democrat. In 1868, he was among the candidates to be Vice President but the nomination went eventually toSchuyler Colfax,[9]whom Fenton had previously been allied with in discussing "growing public agitation about" GeneralGeorge B. McClellan's inactivity with PresidentAbraham Lincolnduring theU.S. Civil War.[10]

U.S. Senator

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Fenton (center) is among the conspiratorial Liberal Republicans in thisHarper's Weeklycartoon of March 16, 1872.

InJanuary 1869,he was elected aU.S. Senator from New York,succeedingEdwin D. Morganand serving from 1869 to 1875 whenFrancis Kernanreplaced him. While in the Senate, he served as Chair of theCommittee to Audit and Control the Contingent Expensesduring the 42nd Congress while also serving on theCommittee on Manufacturesand theCommittee on Territories.[7]In 1872, he was among the Republicans opposed to PresidentUlysses S. Grantwho joined the short-livedLiberal Republican Party.[11]

Later life

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In 1878, Fenton represented the United States at theInternational Monetary Conferencein Paris. He was known as "The Soldiers' Friend" for his efforts to help returningCivil Warveterans. He worked to remove tuition charges for public education, helped to establish six schools for training teachers, and signed the charter forCornell University.[12]

Personal life

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Fenton'shomein Jamestown.

In 1840, Fenton was married to Jane W. Frew (1821–1842), the daughter of John Frew. They had one daughter, Jane Frew Fenton. After his first wife's death in 1842 Jane went to live with her maternal grandparents. Reuben got remarried on June 12, 1844, to Elizabeth Scudder (1824–1901). Together, they were the parents of:[5]

  • Josephine Fenton (1845–1928), who married Frank Edward Gifford (1845–1934).[5]
  • Jeannette Fenton (1849–1924), who married Albert Gilbert (1851–1912).[5]
  • Reuben Earle Fenton (1865–1895), who married Lillian Mai Hayden, daughter of Charles H. Hayden in 1890.[5]

Fenton died on August 25, 1885, inJamestown,[13]and was buried inLake View Cemetery.[14]

Legacy

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The town ofFentoninBroome County, New York,is named for Reuben Fenton.

Fenton's family homewas anItalian Villastyle house built in 1863. He and his family lived there until the passing of Fenton's wife. After her passing the house was abandoned before it became city property in 1919. It has been home to theFenton History Centersince 1964 and is now used as a museum dedicated to the local history of Chautauqua county.[15]It was listed on theNational Register of Historic Placesin 1972.[16]

After his death, a building atThe State University of New York at Fredonia,Fenton Hall, was named in his honor because he had attended the previous incarnation of the school, Fredonia Academy.[17][18]

Fenton Avenue inThe Bronx,New York, is named for him.[17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Reuben Eaton Fenton Papers".www.nysl.nysed.gov.Manuscripts and Special Collections: New York State Library.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  2. ^Maltby, Mrs Martha (Humphreys) (1918).Genealogical Gleanings of Siggins, and Other Pennsylvania Families: A Volume of History, Biography and Colonial, Revolutionary, Civil and Other War Records Including Names of Many Other Warren County Pioneers.Tiernan-Dart Printing Company. p.16.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  3. ^abSchenck, J. S.; Rann, William S. (1887).History of Warren County, Pennsylvania: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers.D. Mason & Company. p.330.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  4. ^Peckham, A.B., M.D., Harriett C. Waite Van Buren (1913).History of Cornelis Maessen Van Buren who came from Holland to the New Netherlands in 1631, and his descendants, including the genealogy of the family of BLOOMINGDALE who are descended from Maas, a son of Cornelis Masessen.Tobias A. Wright Printer and publisher. p. 78.ISBN978-5-87839-437-6.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^abcdeDowns, John P.; Hedley, Fenwick Y. (1921).HISTORY CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY NEW YORK AND ITS PEOPLE, Vol. II(PDF).American Historical Society, Inc.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  6. ^ab"Reuben Eaton Fenton Papers, 1854–1887 (finding aid)".New York State Library web site.New York State Library.RetrievedNovember 25,2014.
  7. ^abc"FENTON, Reuben Eaton – Biographical Information".bioguide.congress.gov.Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  8. ^"Reuben Eaton Fenton".nga.org.National Governors Association.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  9. ^Hollister, Ovando James (1886).Life of Schuyler Colfax.Funk & Wagnalls. p.322.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  10. ^Lehrman, Lewis E. (2018).Lincoln & Churchill: Statesmen at War.Rowman & Littlefield.p. 125.ISBN978-0-8117-6745-3.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  11. ^Dunkelman, Mark H. (2015).Patrick Henry Jones: Irish American, Civil War General, and Gilded Age Politician.LSU Press.p. 94.ISBN978-0-8071-5967-5.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  12. ^Google BooksLife Sketches of State Officers, Senators, and Members of Assembly in the State of New York in 1867by S. R. Harlow and H. H. Boone (Weed, Parsons & Co., Albany NY, 1867)
  13. ^"Death of Ex-Gov. Fenton; He Dies Suddenly from Heart Disease. Jamestown in Mourning for the Loss of Its Leading Citizen—His Long and Useful Career"(PDF).The New York Times.August 26, 1885.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  14. ^"Ex-Gov. Fenton Buried.; Laid at Rest in Lakeview Cemetery After Solemn Funeral Services"(PDF).The New York Times.August 30, 1885.RetrievedDecember 5,2019.
  15. ^Lynn Beebe Weaver (March 1972)."National Register of Historic Places Registration: Fenton, Gov. Reuben, Mansion".New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.Retrieved2009-06-14.See also:"Accompanying two photos".
  16. ^"National Register Information System".National Register of Historic Places.National Park Service.March 13, 2009.
  17. ^abLindquist, Joan (2019)."Remembering Brooklyn Square: Govenor [sic] Reuben E. Fenton".Jamestown Gazette.Jamestown, NY.
  18. ^"The Governor of New York".The Dollar Monthly Magazine.Boston, MA: Office American, Flag of Our Union, and Novelette. June 1865. p. 433 – viaGoogle Books.
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Party political offices
Preceded by Republicannominee forGovernor of New York
1864,1866 		Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of theU.S. House of Representatives
fromNew York's 33rd congressional district
March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of theU.S. House of Representatives
fromNew York's 33rd congressional district
March 4, 1857 – March 3, 1863 		District eliminated
Preceded by Member of theU.S. House of Representatives
fromNew York's 31st congressional district
March 4, 1863 – December 20, 1864 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Governor of New York
1865–1868 		Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 1) from New York
1869–1875
Served alongside:Roscoe Conkling 		Succeeded by
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