Frank O. Chamberlain (April 2, 1829 – March 21, 1902) was an American farmer, hotel manager, and politician from New York.
Life
Chamberlain was born on April 2, 1829, in
Cohocton, New York
Cohocton is a town in Steuben County, New York, United States. The population was 2,268 at the 2020 census. The town contains a village, also called Cohocton and is located in the northwestern part of the county.
History
The town was first s ...
. His father was a veteran of the
War of 1812.
At the age of 15, Chamberlain left for
Rushville, where he worked as a farmer. He later managed the Rushville mill and worked in the livery business. In 1852, he was appointed postmaster of Rushville, a position he held for the next eight years. In 1860, he became the manager of the Rushville hotel, where he worked until the outbreak of the
Civil War.
Chamberlain enlisted in the
8th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment
The 8th New York Cavalry Regiment, also known as the "Rochester Regiment," was a regiment of the Union Army that fought during the American Civil War. It was a volunteer unit organized in Rochester on November 14, 1861, and left the state on Novem ...
in September 1861. He participated in the retreat of
General Banks and served as quartermaster with the rank of major. He resigned after a year due to ill health. He returned to Rushville, where he worked on a farm and livery for the next few years.
In 1862, he was elected Superintendent of the Poor of
Yates County
Yates County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 24,774, making it the third-least populous county in New York. The county seat is Penn Yan. The name is in honor of Joseph C. Yates, who as Govern ...
. He resigned from the position in 1865. He then moved to
Canandaigua, where he spent the next ten years managing the Webster House, a prominent hotel in the area. He bought a farm on the western shore of
Canandaigua Lake in 1873.
In 1869, Chamberlain was elected town supervisor of Canandaigua. In 1876, he was appointed postmaster of Canandaigua.
In 1877, he was appointed Under Sheriff of
Ontario County.
In 1890, Chamberlain was elected to the
New York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits.
The Assem ...
as a
Republican, representing Ontario County. He served in the Assembly in
1891
Events
January–March
* January 1
** Paying of old age pensions begins in Germany.
** A strike of 500 Hungarian steel workers occurs; 3,000 men are out of work as a consequence.
**Germany takes formal possession of its new Africa ...
and
1892
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States.
* February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado.
* February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...
.
Chamberlain was a
freemason
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
and a
Congregationalist. He served as president and treasurer of the Ontario County Agricultural Society, and was a trustee for the New York State Agricultural Society. He was the first president of the
Canandaigua Street Railroad
Chartered in 1886, the Canandaigua Street Railroad was a local streetcar line serving the lakeside city of Canandaigua, New York beginning in 1887. The railroad was sold to the Canandaigua Electric Light and Railroad which rebuilt and electrified ...
.
In 1896, he was appointed trustee for the
New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in
Geneva, New York.
Charmberlain's first wife was Fear Yeackley. Their three sons were Oliver H., James H., and Frank D. After Fear died, he married Elizabeth H. Hulse.
Chamberlain died on March 21, 1902, at home. He was buried in the
Woodlawn Cemetery in Canandaigua.
References
External links
*
The Political Graveyard'
Frank O. Chamberlainat ''
Find a Grave
Find a Grave is a website that allows the public to search and add to an online database of cemetery records. It is owned by Ancestry.com. Its stated mission is "to help people from all over the world work together to find, record and present fin ...
''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chamberlain, Frank O.
1829 births
1902 deaths
People from Cohocton, New York
People from Rushville, New York
Politicians from Canandaigua, New York
Union Army officers
Farmers from New York (state)
Town supervisors in New York (state)
Republican Party members of the New York State Assembly
19th-century American politicians
American Freemasons
Burials in New York (state)
American Congregationalists
New York (state) postmasters