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William Lewis Dayton
Birth: 2-17-1807
Death: 12-1-1864
Biography
William Lewis Dayton was born in Basking Ridge, New Jersey and graduated from Princeton University in 1825. He studied law and passed the bar in 1830. Dayton was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly in 1837 and soon thereafter became an associate justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. In 1842, he was appointed to the U.S. Senate, a position he held until 1851. In 1856, he ran as Republican John C. Fremont's Vice Presidential candidate, thus becoming the very first Republican to run for that office. After his defeat, he served as the New Jersey Attorney General until his appointment by President Lincoln as Minister of France in March 1861. He held this post until his death in 1864.
Letter References
Letter from Frances Miller Seward to William Henry Seward, June 21, 1856
Letter from Frances Miller Seward to William Henry Seward, June 20, 1856
Letter from Frances Miller Seward to Lazette Miller Worden, January 5, 1865
Citations
William Lewis Dayton was born in Basking Ridge, New Jersey and graduated from Princeton University in 1825. He studied law and passed the bar in 1830. Dayton was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly in 1837 and soon thereafter became an associate justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. In 1842, he was appointed to the U.S. Senate, a position he held until 1851. In 1856, he ran as Republican John C. Fremont's Vice Presidential candidate, thus becoming the very first Republican to run for that office. After his defeat, he served as the New Jersey Attorney General until his appointment by President Lincoln as Minister of France in March 1861. He held this post until his death in 1864.