Civil War Congressman from New York
Member of the President Andrew Johnson Impeachment Congress
War Date Autograph Note Signed
(1810-73) Born in Portland, Maine, he attended the Academy at Monmouth, Me., and was a school teacher in Lewiston by the age of 16. He graduated from Waterville College (now Colby College) in 1831, studied law, was the editor of the Portland Advertiser, and served as a member of the Maine State House of Representatives in 1835. Moving to New York City in 1836, he established the New York Daily Express and was the paper's editor for the rest of his life. He served in the New York State Assembly in 1847. He was a U.S. Congressman, from 1849-53, 1863-66, and 1867-73. A "Peace Democrat," he endorsed Stephen A. Douglas for president in 1860, and urged the Federal government to allow the South to "depart in peace" in early 1861. He was a member of the New York State constitutional convention in 1867, and was appointed as a Government director of the Union Pacific Railroad in October 1867. In 1873, he was censured by the House of Representatives for attempted bribery in connection with the Credit Mobilier scandal.
War Date Autograph Note Signed: 4 x 4 1/8, in ink. Washington, Dec. 10/63. Dear Sir, Herewith is the autograph you desire. Yrs. Respy., James Brooks. The bottom right corner of the paper is missing. This just barely affects the bottom of the "s" in Brooks. Light age toning. Boldly written. |