George N. Briggs

George N. Briggs

George Nixon Briggs (born April 12, 1796 in Adams , Massachusetts , † September 11, 1861 in Pittsfield , Massachusetts) was an American politician and governor of the state of Massachusetts from 1844 to 1851 . Between 1831 and 1843 he represented his state in the US House of Representatives .

Early years

At the age of seven, Briggs moved with his parents to Manchester , Vermont and two years later to White Creek, New York State . Briggs attended public schools in these places. In 1814 he moved to Lanesboro , Massachusetts, where he trained as a hat maker. After studying law, he began working as a lawyer in Lanesboro in 1818, specializing in criminal law.

Political rise

Between 1824 and 1831 Briggs was head of the Berkshire County Land Registry . In 1826 he was chairman of the Massachusetts Roads Management Committee. Politically, he was in opposition to Andrew Jackson and his Democratic Party . After founding the Whig Party , he became a member. Between March 4, 1831 and March 3, 1843 Briggs represented his state as a member of Congress . There he was temporarily chairman of the committee for the control of public expenditure and a member of the postal committee. After leaving Washington , he moved to Pittsfield. On November 13, 1843, he was elected the new governor of his state.

Massachusetts governor and further résumé

George Briggs took up his new office on January 1, 1844. After he was re-elected in the following years, he could exercise this until January 11, 1851. During this time the Mexican-American War fell , to which Massachusetts also had to make its contribution. Otherwise, Massachusetts at the time was firmly against the admission of new states into the Union, in which slavery should be allowed. The governor has come under pressure for refusing to overturn a death sentence in a dubious court case.

After the end of his governorship, Briggs initially worked as a lawyer in Pittsfield. In 1853 he was a member of an assembly to revise the Massachusetts state constitution. Between 1853 and 1858 he was a judge at an appeals court. In 1861 he was on a commission to settle disputes between the United States and New Granada. On September 11, 1861, George Briggs was killed in a shooting accident. He had two children with his wife, Harriet Hall.

Web links

• George Briggs in the National Governors Association (English)
• George N. Briggs in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• George N. Briggs in the database of Find a Grave (English)