Anthony Clark Higgins (October 1, 1840 – June 26, 1912) was an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington, in New Castle County, Delaware. He was a veteran of the Civil War and a member of the Republican Party, who served as United States Senator from Delaware.
Anthony C. Higgins | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Senator from Delaware | |
| In office March 4, 1889 – March 3, 1895 | |
| Preceded by | Eli Saulsbury |
| Succeeded by | Richard R. Kenney[1] |
| United States Attorney for the District of Delaware | |
| In office 1869–1876 | |
| President | Ulysses S. Grant |
| Preceded by | John Lockwood Pratt |
| Succeeded by | William Corbit Spruance |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Anthony Clark Higgins October 1, 1840 New Castle, Delaware |
| Died | June 26, 1912 (aged 71) New York City, New York |
| Political party | Republican |
| Alma mater | Delaware College Yale University Harvard Law School |
| Profession | Lawyer |
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Early life and family
editHiggins was born in Red Lion Hundred in New Castle County, Delaware. He attended Newark Academy and Delaware College, and graduated from Yale College in 1861, where he was a member of Skull and Bones.[2]: 94 After studying law at the Harvard Law School, he was admitted to the bar in 1864 and began practice in Wilmington, Delaware. He also served for a time in the Union Army in 1864.
Professional and public career
editHiggins was appointed deputy Attorney General in 1864 and was the United States attorney for Delaware from 1869 until 1876. He was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for election to the 49th Congress in 1884, but was elected to the United States Senate and served from March 4, 1889, until March 3, 1895, when he unsuccessfully sought reelection. During his tenure he was Chairman of the committee to Examine Branches of the Civil Service in the 51st and 52nd Congress, and a member of the Committee on Manufactures in the 52nd Congress. Subsequently, he resumed the practice of law in Wilmington, including service as one of the attorneys for the respondent in the impeachment proceedings of United States District Court Judge Charles Swayne of Florida in 1904/05.
Death and legacy
editHiggins died while at New York, New York, and is buried at the St. Georges Cemetery, near St. Georges in New Castle County.
Almanac
editElections are held the first week of November. The General Assembly chose the U.S. Senators, who took office March 4 for a six-year term.
| Public offices | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Office | Type | Location | Began office | Ended office | Notes | ||
| U.S. Senator | Legislature | Washington, D.C. | March 4, 1889 | March 3, 1895 | |||
| United States congressional service | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | Congress | Chamber | Majority | President | Committees | Class/District |
| 1889–1891 | 51st | U.S. Senate | Republican | Benjamin Harrison | class 2 | |
| 1891–1893 | 52nd | U.S. Senate | Republican | Benjamin Harrison | class 2 | |
| 1893–1895 | 53rd | U.S. Senate | Democratic | Grover Cleveland | class 2 | |
| Election results | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Office | Subject | Party | Votes | % | Opponent | Party | Votes | % | |||
| 1884 | U.S. Representative | Anthony Higgins | Republican | 12,878 | 43% | Charles B. Lore | Democratic | 17,054 | 57% | |||
Notes
edit- ^ This seat was vacant until January 19, 1897.
- ^ Fraternity, Psi Upsilon (1917). The twelfth general catalogue of the Psi Upsilon Fraternity. The fraternity. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
References
edit- Scharf, John Thomas (1888). History of Delaware 1609-1888. 2 vols. Philadelphia: L. J. Richards & Co.
- Conrad, Henry C. (1908). History of the State of Delaware, 3 vols. Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Wickersham Company.