 | BIOGRAPHY
James Gillespie Blaine
Secretary of State,
Term of Appointment:
03/05/1889 to
06/04/1892
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- Born in West Brownsville, Pennsylvania, January 31, 1830;
- Graduated from Washington College in 1847;
- Taught school in Kentucky; married Harriet Stanwood in 1850;
- Taught school and studied law in Philadelphia, 1852-1854;
- Moved in 1854 to Maine, where he purchased an interest in the Augusta Kennebec Journal and served on the editorial staff of the Portland Advertiser;
- One of the founders of the Republican Party; was a member of the Maine House of Representatives 1859-1862 and speaker of the House, 1861-1862;
- Served as chairman of the Republican State Committee, 1859-1881;
- Representative from Maine, 1863-1876;
- Speaker of the House, 1869-1875;
- Senator from Maine 1876-1881;
- Unsuccessful candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 1876 and again in 1880;
- First served as Secretary of State in President Garfield's Cabinet March 5, 1881, continued in office under President Arthur, and served until December 19, 1881;
- Republican candidate for the Presidency in 1884;
- Again served as Secretary of State, this time in President Harrison's Cabinet from March 5, 1889 until June 4, 1892;
- As Secretary of State, convened and presided over the First Pan American Conference in 1889;
- Died in Washington, DC, January 27, 1893.
Released on July 15, 2003
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