Abijah Gilbert (June 18, 1806November 23, 1881) was a
United States Senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
from Florida.
Born in
Gilbertsville, New York, Gilbert attended
Gilbertsville Academy
The Gilbertsville Academy and Collegiate Institute was a school located in Gilbertsville, New York
Gilbertsville is a historic village in Otsego County, New York, United States. The population was 399 at the 2010 census.
The Village of Gilber ...
and entered
Hamilton College
Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...
(in
Clinton, New York) in 1822 as a member of the class of 1826, but did not return the following year. He spent 1822 to 1850 engaged in mercantile pursuits in New York City before moving to
St. Augustine, Florida in 1865.
An early advocate of
abolitionism, Gilbert was a strong supporter of the
Whig Party and, later on, the
Republican Party. He was elected to represent Florida in the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
as a Republican, and served from 1869 to 1875 as part of the
Reconstruction
Reconstruction may refer to:
Politics, history, and sociology
*Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company
*'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...
effort. During that period of time, he missed 40.4% of roll call votes.
Gilbert retired from business and political life after his Senate term ended while continuing to live in St. Augustine. He moved back to Gilbertsville shortly before his death in 1881. He is buried in Brookside Cemetery in Gilbertsville.
See also
*
List of United States senators from Florida
*
United States congressional delegations from Florida
Since Florida became a U.S. state in 1845, it has sent congressional delegations to the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives. Each state elects two senators to serve for six years, and members of the House to two-year t ...
References
*
External links
Abijah Gilbertat PoliticalGraveyard.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Abijah
1806 births
1881 deaths
People from Gilbertsville, New York
New York (state) Whigs
Florida Republicans
Republican Party United States senators from Florida
19th-century American politicians
People from St. Augustine, Florida
American abolitionists
Activists from New York (state)
Activists from Florida
Hamilton College (New York) alumni