Sherman Otis Houghton

Sherman Otis Houghton

Sherman Otis Houghton (born April 10, 1828 in New York City , †  August 31, 1914 in Compton , California ) was an American politician . Between 1871 and 1875 he represented the state of California in the US House of Representatives .

Career

Sherman Houghton attended his home public schools and the Collegiate Institute . During the Mexican-American War he was a soldier in a volunteer unit from New York State between 1846 and 1848 . After retiring from the military, Houghton followed the gold rush and went to California, where he worked in the gold mines for some time. He later settled in San José . In 1854 he was an administrative clerk at the Supreme Court of California . Between 1855 and 1856, Houghton served as the mayor of San José . After studying law and being admitted, he practiced as a lawyer there. During the Civil War he served as an officer in the Union Army . He rose to lieutenant colonel; at times he was an orderly officer .

After the war, Houghton continued his political career as a member of the Republican Party . In the congressional election of 1870 he was elected to the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC in the first constituency of California , where he succeeded Samuel Beach Axtell on March 4, 1871 . After re-election, he was able to complete two legislative terms in Congress until March 3, 1875 . Since 1873 he represented the then newly created fourth district of his state there. Between 1873 and 1875, Houghton was chairman of the Committee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures . In 1874 it was not confirmed.

In 1881, Houghton was hired to investigate irregularities in the United States Mint's San Francisco office. Since 1886 he lived in Los Angeles , where he worked as a lawyer. Sherman Houghton died in Compton on August 31, 1914 and was buried in Los Angeles.

Web links

• Sherman Otis Houghton in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• Sherman Otis Houghton in the database of Find a Grave (English)