| Quantity: | 9 items (1 folder) |
|---|---|
| Access: | Open to research |
| Acquisition: | Collation of items originally accessioned separately. October 1994. |
| Processed By: | Regina Berry, Student Assistant, State University of New York at Albany, October 2015 |
Daniel Stevens Dickinson was born in Goshen, Connecticut, September 11, 1800. In 1806 the family moved to Guilford, Chenango County, New York, where he attended the common schools, apprenticed to a clothier, taught school for several years, engaged in land surveying, and studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1828 and commenced practice in Guilford. He also served as postmaster of the community from 1827 to 1832 before moving to Binghamton, New York, where he was chosen to be the first president of the city in 1834. He served as a member of the New York State Senate from 1837 to1840; lieutenant governor and ex officio president of the senate; and president of the court of errors from 1842 to 1844. He was appointed as a Democrat to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Nathaniel P. Tallmadge, and was re-elected in 1845, serving from November 30, 1844, to March 3, 1851, having been an unsuccessful candidate for re-election. In the senate he served on the Committee on Finance (1849), the Committee on Manufactures (Twenty-ninth and Thirtieth Congresses), the Committee on Private Land Claims (Thirty-first Congress). Following his Congressional career, Dickinson resumed the practice of law and was appointed collector of the port of New York, a position he declined. In 1861 he was elected attorney general of New York State and, in 1864, he was appointed United States commissioner for the final settlement of the Hudson Bay and Puget Sound agricultural claims. President Abraham Lincoln appointed him United States attorney for the southern district of New York, serving from 1865 to 1866. He died in New York City on April 12, 1866, and was buried in Spring Forest Cemetery, Binghamton, Broome County, New York. (Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
)
This collection of nine letters from Dickinson to various correspondents covers mainly political and legal issues. Of particular interest are his letter of August 26, 1844, in which he discusses the election campaign of that year, and his letter of October 26, 1864, in which he comments on the Civil War and its impact on American politics.
A larger collection of his papers can be found at the Broome County Historical Society in Binghamton, N.Y.
| Folder | Item | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | D.S. Dickinson, Albany, [N.Y.], to J[oseph] Boughton, Binghamton, N.Y., February 9, 1838; writes about politics, the Whigs and the banks. A.L.S. 3(4)p. (12232) |
| 1 | 2 | D.S. Dickinson, Geneva, [N.Y.], to W.H. Jewett, Skaneateles, N.Y., August 26, 1844; referencing speaking visits to New York towns during senate campaign and the victory to be won. A.L.S. 2(4)p. (6095) |
| 1 | 3 | D.S. Dickinson, Binghamton, [N.Y.], to Wm. A. Seaver, December 11, 1851; discusses presidential politics. A.L.S. 8p. (14652) |
| 3 | 4 | D.S. Dickinson, Binghamton, [N.Y.], to Dr. J. Ray, August 21, 1853; regarding the trial of John M. Thurston [accused of killing his brother-in-law, Anson Garrison, at Owego, New York, three years earlier], reporting that he had been acquitted, on a plea of insanity. A.L.S. 1p. (12251) |
| 1 | 5 | D.S. Dickinson, Binghamton, [N.Y.], to Oscar T, Kuhn, July 20, 1857; sending regrets for something not done. A.L.S. 2(4)p. (3520) |
| 1 | 6 | D.S. Dickinson, Binghamton, [N.Y.], to W.G. Bryan, September 17, 1860; responding to previous letter, mentioning Marshall Hone [?]. A.L.S. 2(4)p. (6411) |
| 1 | 7 | D.S. Dickinson, Binghamton, [N.Y.], to W.W. Jones, July 9, 1864; references a legal case involving a child. A.L.S. 6p. (6426) |
| 1 | 8 | D.S. Dickinson, Binghamton, [N.Y.], to W.C. Hull [?], October 26, 1864; regarding campaign speeches. A.L.S. 8p. With transcription. (16453) |
| 1 | 9 | D.S. Dickinson, Binghamton, [N.Y.], to H.C. Powell [?], March 31, 1865; referring to the end of the Civil War. A.L.S. 4p. With transcription. (18216) |