Senator Preston King

Today marks the death of Senator Preston King, who died after jumping into New York Harbor in 1865. Senator Preston King was born in Ogdensburgh on October 14, 1806 the illegitimate son of John King and Margaret Galloway. King graduated from Union College, Schenectady in 1827. He studied law under Silas Wright and practiced law in St. Lawrence County. He established the St. Lawrence Republican newspaper in 1830 and was postmaster of Ogdensburgh from 1831-1834. He was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1835; serving until 1838. King was an instigator of the Patriot War (1837-38), a revolution to sever Canada from Great Britain, going so far as to charter a boat to attempt to save American participants in the Battle of Windmill Point. As a Democrat he was elected to Congress for the first time in 1843. He served until 1847 and was elected again serving from 1849-1853, then was elected to the Senate as a Republican from 1857-1863. At the end of the Civil War King demanded that Jefferson Davis, former president of the Confederate States of America, and other Confederate leaders be hanged for treason. King was a close personal friend to President Andrew Johnson, living in the White House for a time. It was Johnson who appointed King collector of the Port of New York in 1865. Sadly, three months later Preston King committed suicide by jumping from a ferryboat into New York Harbor. He is buried at the Ogdensburgh Cemetery. #ogdensburghistory #prestonking #otd