Bainbridge Wadleigh (January 4, 1831January 24, 1891) was a

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. Born in

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

, he attended the common schools and

Kimball Union Academy Kimball Union Academy is a private boarding school located in New Hampshire. Founded in 1813, it is the 22nd oldest boarding school in the United States. The academy's mission is to "create a deep sense of belonging for every member of our commu ...

(

Meriden, New Hampshire Meriden is an unincorporated community in the eastern part of the town of Plainfield in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. Meriden is home to Kimball Union Academy, a private boarding school. New Hampshire Route 120 passes through t ...

). He studied law, was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in 1850 and commenced practice in

Milford Milford may refer to: Place names Canada * Milford (Annapolis), Nova Scotia * Milford (Halifax), Nova Scotia * Milford, Ontario England * Milford, Derbyshire * Milford, Devon, a place in Devon * Milford on Sea, Hampshire * Milford, Shro ...

. Wadleigh served six terms as town moderator and was a member of the

New Hampshire House of Representatives The New Hampshire House of Representatives is the lower house in the New Hampshire General Court, the bicameral legislature of the state of New Hampshire. The House of Representatives consists of 400 members coming from 204 legislative district ...

in 1855-1856, 1859-1860, and from 1869 to 1872.

United States Senate

Wadleigh was nominated to the U.S. Senate on the evening of June 13, 1872 by the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

party caucus of the New Hampshire legislature, on its fifth ballot. He received the nomination instead of the incumbent Senator

James W. Patterson James Willis Patterson (July 2, 1823May 4, 1893) was an American politician and a United States representative and Senator from New Hampshire. Early life, education and family Born in Henniker, Merrimack County, New Hampshire, he was the son ...

, who had led on the first three caucus ballots. Wadleigh had not sought the office, and received 3 votes on the first ballot. In the succeeding second through fourth ballots, he received 8, 18, and 39 votes respectively. On the fifth ballot Wadleigh received 152 votes, and 58 were received by all others. The other individuals on the fifth ballot were

Edward H. Rollins Edward Henry Rollins (October 3, 1824July 31, 1889) was a United States representative and Senator from New Hampshire. Biography Born in a part of Somersworth, New Hampshire which is now Rollinsford, he attended the common schools and academ ...

(former congressman and future U.S. senator),

Onslow Stearns Onslow Stearns (August 30, 1810 – December 29, 1878) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 32nd governor of New Hampshire. Biography Stearns was born in Billerica, Massachusetts on August 30, 1810. He attended the local ...

(the recent governor),

Mason W. Tappan Mason Weare Tappan (October 20, 1817 – October 25, 1886) was a New Hampshire state representative, a U.S. congressman from 1855 to 1861, a colonel during the American Civil War and the New Hampshire Attorney General. He was born in Newpor ...

(former congressman and later New Hampshire Attorney General), and

Gilman Marston Gilman Marston (August 20, 1811July 3, 1890) was a United States representative, Senator, and United States Army general from New Hampshire. Early life Marston was born in Orford, New Hampshire. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1837 and fr ...

(former congressman). Elected by the New Hampshire legislature to the U.S. Senate, he served from March 4, 1873, to March 3, 1879. Charles H. Bell was Wadleigh's immediate successor, and had been appointed to fill the Senate seat for several months, until the most recently elected New Hampshire legislature could convene. Wadleigh attempted to obtain the nomination from the New Hampshire Republican legislative caucus, but

Henry W. Blair Henry William Blair (December 6, 1834March 14, 1920) was a United States representative and Senator from New Hampshire. During the American Civil War, he was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Union Army. A Radical Republican in his earlier political ...

received the nomination after several ballots, and was later elected to the Senate by the legislature, in 1879. While in the Senate he was chairman of the Committee on Patents (Forty-fourth and Forty-fifth Congresses) and a member of the Committee on Privileges and Elections (Forty-fifth Congress). He resumed the practice of law in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, where he died in 1891; interment was in West Street Cemetery, Milford.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wadleigh, Bainbridge 1831 births 1891 deaths Republican Party members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives Republican Party United States senators from New Hampshire 19th-century American politicians People from Bradford, New Hampshire