James Brooks (politician)

James Brooks
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York
In office March 4, 1867 – April 30, 1873
Preceded by	William E. Dodge
Succeeded by	Samuel S. Cox
Constituency	New York08 !8th district (1867–73) New York06 !6th district (1873)
In office March 4, 1863 – April 7, 1866
Preceded by	Isaac C. Delaplaine
Succeeded by	William E. Dodge
Constituency	New York08 !8th district
In office March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1853
Preceded by	Horace Greeley
Succeeded by	John Wheeler
Constituency	New York06 !6th district
Personal details
Born	(1807-11-10)November 10, 1807 Portland, Maine, U.S.
Died	April 30, 1873(1873-04-30) (aged 65) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting place	Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Citizenship	US
Political party	Whig Democrat
Alma mater	Waterville College
Profession	Politician

James Brooks (November 10, 1807 – April 30, 1873) was a U.S. representative from New York during the latter half of the American Civil War.

Personal and education

He was born on November 10, 1807, in or near Portland, Maine. As a student, he attended public schools and then the academy at Monmouth, Maine. By the age of 16, he was teaching school, in Lewiston, Maine. He graduated from Waterville College (now Colby College) in 1831.

While reading law with John Neal, Brooks also worked as an editor for the Portland Advertiser.

Political career

After finishing law studies, he worked as the Advertiser's Washington correspondent. He served as a member of the Maine House of Representatives in 1835 and lost a Congressional election in 1836. After losing, he moved to New York City and founded the New York Daily Express, where he was editor-in-chief for the rest of his life. He was a member of the New York State Assembly (New York Co., 16th D.) in 1848.

He was elected, as a Whig, to the Thirty-first and Thirty-second Congresses (March 4, 1849 - March 3, 1853). He lost a race for re-election in 1852 and resumed his editorial pursuits.

In the 1860 U.S. presidential election, Brooks would support the Constitutional Union Party ticket of John Bell and Edward Everett, but by the outbreak of the American Civil War, he had come to align himself with Fernando Wood and his Mozart Hall faction of New York City's Tammany Hall. Throughout the conflict, Brooks would serve as one of Wood's chief lieutenants, arguing alongside Wood against the use of coercion or force to restore the Union, resulting in them both being recognized throughout the North as outspoken leaders in the anti-war Copperhead movement.

Brooks was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-eighth Congress (March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1865). He presented credentials as a Member-elect to the Thirty-ninth Congress, after a disputed election; he served from March 4, 1865, until April 7, 1866. He was succeeded by William E. Dodge, who had contested the election and won his case.

In 1866, Brooks was elected as a Democrat to the Fortieth Congress, and to the three succeeding Congresses. He was a Member of Congress until his death in 1873.

Brooks served as member of the New York State constitutional convention in 1867. That same year, he was appointed a government director of the Union Pacific Railroad.

Brooks was censured by the House of Representatives on February 27, 1873, for attempted bribery, in connection with the Crédit Mobilier of America scandal.

Death

Brooks died in Washington, D.C., April 30, 1873. He was interred at Green-Wood Cemetery, in Brooklyn, New York.

State Senator Erastus Brooks (1815–1886) was his brother.

References

Sources

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress website http://bioguide.congress.gov.

• James Brooks at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Retrieved on 2009-05-12.

External links

• Works by or about James Brooks at Internet Archive