George Washington Lay (July 26, 1798 – October 21, 1860) was an American politician and diplomat who served 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 * '' ...

and Charge D'Affaires to Sweden. Born 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 ...

, Lay pursued classical studies and graduated in 1817 from

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. He studied law with Phineas L. Tracy, attained admission to the bar in 1820, and commenced practice with in

Batavia, New York Batavia is a city in and the county seat of Genesee County, New York, United States. It is near the center of the county, surrounded by the Town of Batavia, which is a separate municipality. Batavia's population as of the 2020 census was 15,6 ...

as Tracy's partner. Lay served as Treasurer of Genesee County from 1825 to 1831. He was elected as an

Anti-Masonic Party The Anti-Masonic Party was the earliest third party in the United States. Formally a single-issue party, it strongly opposed Freemasonry, but later aspired to become a major party by expanding its platform to take positions on other issues. After ...

candidate to the Twenty-third Congress and reelected as an

Anti-Jacksonian The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a political party in the United States that evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John Qu ...

to the Twenty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1837). In 1835 he received the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

. Lay later became a Whig, and served as 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 ...

in 1840. He was Charge D'Affaires to Sweden from May 12, 1842, to October 29, 1845. He died in Batavia on October 21, 1860. He was interred in

Batavia Cemetery Batavia Cemetery is located on Harvester Avenue in Batavia, New York, United States. It opened in 1823 and contains over 8,000 graves, mostly from the 19th century. In 2002 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the first of t ...

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lay, George Washington 1798 births 1860 deaths People from Greene County, New York Anti-Masonic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians New York (state) National Republicans National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives New York (state) Whigs Members of the New York State Assembly Hamilton College (New York) alumni New York (state) lawyers 19th-century American diplomats Burials in New York (state) People from Catskill, New York 19th-century American lawyers