History of the Thirty-Ninth Congress of the United States

by William Horatio Barnes

JAMES DIXON was born in Enfield, Connecticut, in 1814. He graduated at Williams College in 1834, and soon after entered upon the practice of law. In 1837 he was elected to the Legislature of Connecticut, and was twice reëlected. He was a Representative in Congress from Connecticut from 1845 to 1849. In the latter year he was elected to the State Senate. He was elected United States Senator from Connecticut in 1857, and was re-elected in 1863.—423, 425, 495, 548.

NATHAN F. DIXON, son of a Senator of the same name, was born in Westerly, Rhode Island, May 1, 1812, and graduated at Brown University in 1833. After attending the Law Schools at New Haven and Cambridge, he was admitted to the bar in 1837. From 1840 to 1849 he was a member of the General Assembly of Rhode Island, and after having served in the Thirty-First Congress, was again elected to the Legislature. In 1863 he was elected a Representative from Rhode Island to the Thirty-Eighth Congress, and entered upon his second Congressional term in 1865. He was in 1866 re-elected to the Fortieth Congress.

WILLIAM E. DODGE was born in Hartford, Connecticut, September 4, 1805. Early in life he went to New York City, where he engaged actively, in business. He has been forty years at the head of one of the most extensive manufacturing and importing establishments in the country. He was many years President of the National Temperance Society, and has long been a prominent promoter of benevolent enterprises in New York City. Having established his right to the seat held by James Brooks, he was admitted a member of the Thirty-Ninth Congress in the spring of 1866. He was succeeded by James Brooks in the Fortieth Congress.—511, 568.

IGNATIUS DONNELLY was born in Philadelphia, November 3, 1831, and was educated at the Central High School of his native city. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1853. He emigrated to Minnesota in 1857, and two years after was elected Lieutenant Governor of that State, and held the office two terms. In 1862 he was elected a Representative from Minnesota to the Thirty-Eighth Congress, and was re-elected to the Thirty-Ninth and Fortieth Congresses.—145,156, 333, 507, 238, 553.

JAMES R. DOOLITTLE was born in Hampton, New York, January 3, 1815. He graduated at Geneva College in 1834, became a lawyer, and for several years held the office of District Attorney for Wyoming County. In 1851 he removed to Wisconsin, and two years after was elected Judge of the First Judicial Circuit of that State. In 1857 he was elected a United States Senator from Wisconsin, and in 1863 was re-elected for the term ending in 1869.—28, 38, 285, 408, 431, 456, 457, 458, 459, 460, 462, 495, 501, 531, 532, 533, 541, 564.

JOHN F. DRIGGS was born in Kinderhook, New York, March 8, 1813. He served an apprenticeship in the sash and door-making business, and soon after set up as a master mechanic in New York City. He took no part in politics until 1844, when he assisted in the reform movement by which James Harper was elected Mayor of New York. He was soon after appointed Superintendent of Blackwell's Island Penitentiary. In 1856 he removed to East Saginaw, Michigan, and was two years after elected President of that town. In 1859 he was elected to the Michigan Legislature. Two years after he was appointed Register at the Land Office for the Saginaw District, and held the office until his election as a Representative from Michigan to the Thirty-Eighth Congress in 1862. He was returned by increased majorities to the Thirty-Ninth and Fortieth Congresses.

EBENEZER DUMONT was born in Vevay, Indiana, November 23, 1814. He was educated at the Indiana University, and adopted the profession of law. In 1838 he was elected a member of the Indiana Legislature, and from 1839 to 1845 held the office of County Treasurer. He served in the Mexican War as a Lieutenant Colonel, and was subsequently a member of the State Legislature, a Presidential Elector, and President of the State Bank. At the breaking out of the rebellion, he was appointed Colonel of the Seventh Regiment of Indiana Volunteers, and fought in the battle of Philippi, in West Virginia. Having been promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, he commanded a brigade at the battle of Murfreesboro. He was subsequently assigned to the military command of Nashville, and from that place led an expedition against John Morgan, capturing nearly all of his command. In 1862, while yet in the army, he was elected a Representative from Indiana to the Thirty-Eighth Congress, and was re-elected in 1864. His successor in the Fortieth Congress is John Coburn.

EPHRAIM R. ECKLEY was born in Jefferson County, Ohio, December 9, 1812, and was admitted to the bar in 1837. From 1843 to 1853 he served in the House of Representatives and in the Senate of Ohio. In the Civil War he was Colonel of the Twenty-Sixth and Eightieth Regiments of Ohio Volunteers. He fought in several battles, and at Corinth commanded a brigade. In 1862 he was elected a Representative from Ohio to the Thirty-Eighth Congress, and was re-elected to the Thirty-Ninth and Fortieth.—447.

GEORGE F. EDMUNDS was born in Richmond, Vermont, February 1, 1828, and was admitted to the bar in 1849. In 1854 he entered the Vermont Legislature, and served three years as Speaker. In 1861 and 1862 he served in the State Senate, and was the Presiding Officer of that body. He was appointed to the vacancy in the United States Senate occasioned by the death of Solomon Foot, and entered upon the duties of that position in April, 1866.—559, 560.

BENJAMIN EGGLESTON was born in Corinth, New York, January 3, 1816. He removed to Ohio in 1831, and gave his attention to commercial pursuits. He has been identified with many important public enterprises. He was for many years Chairman of the Board of Public Works of Cincinnati, and President of the City Council. He was for some years a member of the State Legislature. In 1860 he was a delegate to the Chicago Convention, and was a Presidential Elector in the election of that year. In 1864 he was elected a Representative from Ohio to the Thirty-Ninth Congress, and was re-elected in 1866.