Lucius Robinson (November 4, 1810March 23, 1891) was an American lawyer and politician. He was the 26th Governor of New York from 1877 to 1879.

Life

He graduated from

Delaware Academy Delaware Academy Delaware Academy is a K-12 school in Delhi (village), New York, northwest of New York City. History 19th century The school was founded in 1819. On April 12 of that year, approval was given for the school to be built. The first ...

Delhi, New York Delhi ( ) is a town in Delaware County, New York, United States. The population was 4,795 at the 2020 census.US Census Bureau, 2020 Census, Delhi town, Delaware County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP ...

. Afterwards he studied law in the offices of

Erastus Root Erastus Root (March 16, 1773 – December 24, 1846) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He is most notable for serving four separate non-consecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives in the early 19th Century. ...

and Amasa J. Parker, was admitted to the bar in 1832, and began practice in

Catskill, New York Catskill is a town in the southeastern section of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 11,298 at the 2020 census, the largest town in the county. The western part of the town is in the Catskill Park. The town contains a v ...

He was district attorney of Greene County from 1837 to 1840. Then he removed to New York City and became a member of

Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...

. He joined the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

when it was founded, and was a member of 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 ...

(Chemung Co.) in

1860 Events January–March * January 2 – The discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan is announced at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. * January 10 – The Pemberton Mill in Lawrence, Massachusett ...

and

1861 Statistically, this year is considered the end of the whale oil industry and (in replacement) the beginning of the petroleum oil industry. Events January–March * January 1 ** Benito Juárez captures Mexico City. ** The first steam-p ...

. He was

New York State Comptroller The New York State Comptroller is an elected constitutional officer of the U.S. state of New York and head of the New York state government's Department of Audit and Control. The New York State Comptroller is the highest-paid state auditor or ...

from 1862 to 1865. In 1861, he was elected on the Union ticket nominated by

Republicans 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 ...

and

War Democrats War Democrats in American politics of the 1860s were members of the Democratic Party who supported the Union and rejected the policies of the Copperheads (or Peace Democrats). The War Democrats demanded a more aggressive policy toward the Con ...

. In 1863 he was defeated for re-nomination at the Union state convention, but the nominated candidate refused to run, and the Republican State Committee put Robinson back on the ticket, and he was re-elected. After the war he joined the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

again, and was re-nominated for comptroller on the Democratic ticket, but this time was defeated by the Republican candidate Thomas Hillhouse. After his defeat he resumed the practice of law. In 1871–72 he was a member of the New York State Constitutional Commission. He was a director of the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake Erie ...

, and was acting president of the company while the president, Peter H. Watson, was travelling about Europe. In 1875, he was again elected state comptroller, defeating the Republican candidate, former

United States Treasurer The treasurer of the United States is an officer in the United States Department of the Treasury who serves as custodian and trustee of the federal government's collateral assets and the supervisor of the department's currency and coinage produc ...

Francis E. Spinner Francis Elias Spinner (January 21, 1802 – December 31, 1890) was an American politician from New York. He served as Treasurer of the United States from 1861 to 1875, and was the first administrator in the federal government to employ women for ...

. While serving as comptroller, he was elected governor, and was in office from 1877 to 1879, the first governor to serve a three-year term after the amendment to the state constitution in 1874. As governor, he opposed

vigorously, which led the Tammany leader

John Kelly John or Jack Kelly may refer to: People Academics and scientists * John Kelly (engineer), Irish professor, former Registrar of University College Dublin *John Kelly (scholar) (1750–1809), at Douglas, Isle of Man *John Forrest Kelly (1859–1922) ...

to have himself nominated for governor by Tammany Hall at the next election in 1879, with the intention to split the Democratic vote, and so defeat Robinson. This happened, and the Republican candidate

Alonzo B. Cornell Alonzo Barton Cornell (January 22, 1832 – October 15, 1904) was a New York politician and businessman who was the 27th Governor of New York from 1880 to 1882. Early years Cornell was born in Ithaca, New York, on January 22, 1832. He was ...

was elected governor with fewer votes than Robinson and Kelly together. Robinson was a delegate to the

1876 Democratic National Convention The 1876 Democratic National Convention assembled in St. Louis just nine days after the conclusion of the Republican National Convention in Cincinnati. This was the first political convention held west of the Mississippi River. St. Louis was noti ...

and supported

Samuel J. Tilden Samuel Jones Tilden (February 9, 1814 – August 4, 1886) was an American politician who served as the 25th Governor of New York and was the Democratic candidate for president in the disputed 1876 United States presidential election. Tilden was ...

for president.

Death

He died from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

, and was buried at the Woodlawn Cemetery, Elmira.

References

* * * ''Note: this website lists the incorrect death year''

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Lucius 1810 births 1891 deaths Governors of New York (state) New York State Comptrollers Members of the New York State Assembly People from the Catskills People from Greene County, New York 19th-century American railroad executives Deaths from pneumonia in New York (state) New York (state) Republicans New York (state) Democrats Erie Railroad Democratic Party governors of New York (state) Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Elmira, New York) 19th-century American politicians