Samuel Birdsall (May 14, 1791 – February 8, 1872) was an American lawyer and politician who served one term as a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

from 1837 to 1839.

Biography

Born in

Hillsdale, New York Hillsdale is a town in Columbia County, New York, near Hudson, New York and Great Barrington, Massachusetts. State Routes 22 and 23 intersect near the town center, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The town has several r ...

, Birdsall attended the common schools and studied law in the office of

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (Uni ...

. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1812 and commenced practice in

Cooperstown, New York Cooperstown is a village in and county seat of Otsego County, New York, United States. Most of the village lies within the town of Otsego, but some of the eastern part is in the town of Middlefield. Located at the foot of Otsego Lake in the C ...

. He married Ann Eliza Kendig and they had three children, Elizabeth Lucinda, Franklin Samuel, and Walter. Birdsall served as a master in chancery in 1815 and moved to

Waterloo, New York Waterloo is a town in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 7,338 at the 2020 census. The town and its major community are named after Waterloo, Belgium, where Napoleon was defeated. There is also a village called Water ...

in 1817. In 1819 he was commissioned Judge Advocate of the New York Militia's 21st Division with the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

. He was counselor in the

supreme court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

and solicitor in chancery in 1823. He served as surrogate court judge of Seneca County from 1827 to 1837 and was a state bank commissioner in 1832.

Tenure in Congress

Elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the Twenty-fifth Congress, Birdsall was United States Representative for the twenty-fifth district of New York from March 4, 1837, to March 3, 1839.

Later career

Not a candidate for renomination in 1838, Birdsall was admitted to practice before the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

in 1838; and served as

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

of Seneca County in 1846. He was Postmaster of

from 1853 to 1863.

Death

Birdsall died in Waterloo on February 8, 1872 (age 80 years, 270 days). He is

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

at Maple Grove Cemetery in Waterloo.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Birdsall, Samuel 1791 births 1872 deaths United States Army officers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) New York (state) state court judges New York (state) postmasters People from Hillsdale, New York People from Cooperstown, New York People from Waterloo, New York 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American judges