George Partridge Sanger (November 27, 1819 – July 3, 1890) was an American lawyer, editor, judge, and businessman who served as the

United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (in case citations, D. Mass.) is the federal district court whose territorial jurisdiction is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The first court session was hel ...

from 1873 to 1886 and was the first president of the John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company.

Early life

Sanger was born on November 27, 1819, in

Dover, Massachusetts Dover is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,923 at the time of the 2020 United States Census. With a median income of more than $250,000, Dover is one of the wealthiest towns in Massachusetts. Located abou ...

. He graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

in 1840 and after spending two years as a teacher in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, returned to Harvard as a Latin tutor and a law student.

Legal career

Sanger graduated from Harvard Law School in 1844 and was admitted to the bar in 1846. He spent the next three years practicing law in Boston, first with Stephen Henry Phillips, and later with Charles G. Davis. In 1849, Sanger was named Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. Sanger was a member of the Charlestown Common Council from 1849 to 1850, and the Board of Aldermen from 1851 to 1853. In January 1853, he was appointed to the staff of Governor John H. Clifford. In September of that year he was appointed District Attorney for Suffolk County, Massachusetts. The following year he was appointed Judge of the Massachusetts Court of Common Pleas. He remained on the bench until the Court was abolished in 1859. In 1860, he was a member of the

Boston Common Council The Boston City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is made up of 13 members: 9 district representatives and 4 at-large members. Councillors are elected to two-year terms and there is no l ...

. From 1861 to 1869, Sanger again served as District Attorney for Suffolk County, Massachusetts. In 1873, he was a member of the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...

. Following the death of David H. Mason, President

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

appointed Sanger United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. He remained in this role until 1882.

Editor

Sanger worked for

Little, Brown and Company Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emily ...

, where he was responsible for editing the ''Law Reporter'' and ''The

United States Statutes at Large The ''United States Statutes at Large'', commonly referred to as the ''Statutes at Large'' and abbreviated Stat., are an official record of Acts of Congress and concurrent resolutions passed by the United States Congress. Each act and resolut ...

''. From 1842 to 1860, he was the editor of the ''American Almanac''.

John Hancock Insurance

On October 14, 1862, the John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company's Board of Directors elected Sanger the first president of the company. He held this position until August 1863.

Personal life

Sanger married Elizabeth Sherburne Thompson of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in 1846. The couple had four sons: *John White Sanger *William Thompson Sanger *George Partridge Sanger Jr. *

Charles Robert Sanger Charles Robert Sanger (1860–1912) was a chemist and professor at Harvard University whose research centered on detecting and curing the causes of illness caused by chemicals in the home. Early life Sanger was born on August 31, 1860, in Bosto ...

Death

Sanger died on July 3, 1890, in Swampscott, Massachusetts.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanger, George P. 1831 births 1894 deaths People from Dover, Massachusetts People from Charlestown, Boston Lawyers from Boston People from Swampscott, Massachusetts Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Harvard Law School alumni American editors Massachusetts state court judges United States Attorneys for the District of Massachusetts District attorneys in Suffolk County, Massachusetts 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers