George Briggs (1805-1869)
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George Briggs (May 6, 1805 - June 1, 1869) was a United States Representative from New York. Born near Broadalbin, Fulton County, he moved to Vermont in 1812 with his parents, who settled in Bennington. He attended the public schools, engaged in business as a dealer in hardware, was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives in 1837 and returned to New York, settling in New York City in 1838 and continuing in the hardware business.
Briggs was elected as a Whig to the Thirty-first and Thirty-second Congresses, holding office from March 4, 1849 to March 3, 1853. He declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1852, and was elected as a Republican to the Thirty-sixth Congress, holding office from March 4, 1859 to March 3, 1861. During the latter Congress he was chairman of the Committee on Revolutionary Claims. He declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1860 and retired. In 1866 he was a delegate to the Union National Convention at Philadelphia. He died at his summer home, "Woodlawn," at Saratoga Springs; interment was in Greenwood Cemetery, New York City.
