Jacob Harold Gallinger (March 28, 1837 – August 17, 1918), was a

United States senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

who served as

President pro tempore of the Senate A president pro tempore or speaker pro tempore is a constitutionally recognized officer of a legislative body who presides over the chamber in the absence of the normal presiding officer. The phrase ''pro tempore'' is Latin "for the time being". ...

in 1912 and 1913.

Early life and career

Jacob Harold Gallinger was born in

Cornwall, Ontario Cornwall is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, situated where the provinces of Ontario and Quebec and the state of New York converge. It is the seat of the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas, and Glengarry and is Ontario's easternmost city ...

British Canada British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

on March 28, 1837. His father's family were German and his mother's was German American. He was home-schooled from an early age. Gallinger moved to the U.S. at an early age and first worked as a printer.

Medical career

Gallinger studied medicine at the Cincinnati Eclectic Medical Institute and graduated at the head of his class in May 1858. He studied abroad for three years, writing and working as a printer to cover his expenses. In 1861, he returned to the United States and engaged in the practice of

homeopathic medicine Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths, believe that a substance that causes symptoms of a dise ...

and surgery in

Keene, New Hampshire Keene is a city in, and the seat of Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 23,047 at the 2020 census, down from 23,409 at the 2010 census. Keene is home to Keene State College and Antioch University New England. I ...

before moving to Concord, New Hampshire in April 1862. He practiced medicine actively until 1885. He was an active member of the

American Institute of Homeopathy The American Institute of Homeopathy (AIH), established in 1844, is the oldest extant national physician’s organization in the United States. The founding president of the AIH was Constantine Hering. Past AIH presidents include Royal S. Cope ...

from 1868–80, and throughout his political career, he was a forthright advocate of the homeopathic school of thought and practice. Besides the AIH, he was a member of many state and national medical societies and a frequent contributor to the journals of his profession. He was on the board of trustees of Columbia Hospital for Women, and a member of the board of visitors to Providence Hospital.

Early political career

State legislature

Gallinger was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives in 1872 and re-elected in 1873. He served as a member of the state constitutional convention in 1876. He was then elected to the

New Hampshire Senate The New Hampshire Senate has been meeting since 1784. It is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court, alongside the lower New Hampshire House of Representatives. It consists of 24 members representing Senate districts based on populatio ...

and served from 1878 to 1880. In 1879, he was elected Senate President. He became surgeon general of New Hampshire under Governor Natt Head, with the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

, from 1879 to 1880. In 1882, he was elected chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party and remained in that role until his resignation in 1890.

United States House of Representatives

In 1884, Gallinger was elected to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

, serving from March 4, 1885, to March 3, 1889, but declined to be a candidate for reelection in 1888. In 1888, Gallinger served as chairman of the New Hampshire delegation to the Republican National Convention at

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, where he seconded the nomination of

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

for President.

United States Senate

In 1890, Gallinger was elected to the New Hampshire House again, but served only a short time before the legislature elected him to the United States Senate in 1891. He was reelected by the legislature without Republican opposition in 1897, 1903 and 1909, and by popular vote in 1914. He served from March 4, 1891, until his death in

Franklin, New Hampshire Franklin is a city in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 8,741, the least of New Hampshire's 13 cities. Franklin includes the village of West Franklin. History Situated at the confluence of th ...

in 1918. As Senator, Gallinger chaired the New Hampshire delegations to the Republican National Convention of 1888, 1900, 1904 and 1908, and for a time was a member of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. Political action committee, political committee that assists the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republi ...

. In 1898, Gallinger returned to the role of chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party and was re-elected in 1900 and 1902. In 1901, he was also elected to represent New Hampshire on the Republican National Committee. As Senator he was considered a master of parliamentary law and was frequently called upon to preside over the Senate. He was also an active public speaker in and out of the Senate. He was President pro tempore during the Sixty-second Congress and was also Republican Conference chairman. He also chaired the Committee on Transportation Routes to the Seaboard, Committee on Pensions, Committee on the District of Columbia, and the Merchant Marine Commission. He was named a member of the National Forest Reservation Commission, established by the

Weeks Act The Weeks Act is a federal law (36 Stat. 961) enacted by the United States Congress on March 1, 1911. Introduced by Massachusetts Congressman John W. Weeks and signed into law by President William Howard Taft, the law authorized the United States ...

, which Gallinger sponsored in the Senate.

Personal life and death

Gallinger received the honorary degree of A.M. from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

in 1885 and served as trustee of

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Chartered in 1821 by the United States Congress, GWU is the largest Higher educat ...

for several years. He was interred at Blossom Hill Cemetery, Concord.

Notes

References

* ''

American National Biography The ''American National Biography'' (ANB) is a 24-volume biographical encyclopedia set that contains about 17,400 entries and 20 million words, first published in 1999 by Oxford University Press under the auspices of the American Council of Le ...

'' * ''

Dictionary of American Biography The ''Dictionary of American Biography'' was published in New York City by Charles Scribner's Sons under the auspices of the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS). History The dictionary was first proposed to the Council in 1920 by hi ...

'' * Schlup, Leonard. "Consistent Conservative: Jacob Harold Gallinger and the Presidential Campaign of 1912 in New Hampshire." ''International Review of History and Political Science'' 21 (August 1984): 49-57. * U.S. Congress. Memorial Services for Jacob Harold Gallinger. 65th Cong., 3rd sess., 1918-1919. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1919. * * * *
Jacob H. Gallinger, late a representative from New Hampshire, Memorial addresses delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate frontispiece 1919
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gallinger, Jacob Harold 1837 births Pre-Confederation Canadian emigrants to the United States 1918 deaths Members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives People from Cornwall, Ontario Chairpersons of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee Republican Party United States senators from New Hampshire Presidents of the New Hampshire Senate Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire 19th-century American politicians Presidents pro tempore of the United States Senate