Robert Safford Hale (September 24, 1822 – December 14, 1881) was a

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from New York. Born in

Chelsea, Vermont Chelsea is a town in and the shire town (county seat) of Orange County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,233 at the 2020 census. Geography Chelsea is located in a river valley in central Vermont. The First Branch of the White Ri ...

, Hale attended South Royalton (Vermont) Academy, and was graduated from the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the United ...

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, no ...

in 1842. He studied law. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

and commenced practice in

Elizabethtown, New York Elizabethtown is a town in Essex County, New York, United States. The population was 1,163 at the 2010 census. The county seat of Essex County is the hamlet of Elizabethtown, located in the northern part of the town. The name is derived from Eliz ...

, in 1847. He served as judge of Essex County 1856–1864. He was elected a Regent of the

University of the State of New York The University of the State of New York (USNY, ) is the state of New York's governmental umbrella organization for both public and private institutions in New York State. The "university" is not an educational institution: it is, in fact, a lic ...

in 1859. In the 1860 presidential election, he was a

presidential elector The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia app ...

for

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

and Hannibal Hamiln. He served as special counsel of the United States charged with the defense of the "abandoned and captured property claims" 1868–1870 and as Agent and counsel for the United States before the American and British Mixed Commission under the Treaty of Washington 1871–1873. Hale was elected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to the Thirty-ninth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of

Orlando Kellogg Orlando Kellogg (June 18, 1809August 24, 1865) was a U.S. Representative from New York during the latter half of the American Civil War and the early days of Reconstruction. Biography Kellogg was born in Elizabethtown, New York and Kellogg pur ...

and served from December 3, 1865, to March 3, 1867. Hale was elected to the Forty-third Congress (March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875). He served as chairman of the Committee on District of Columbia (Forty-third Congress). He was not a candidate for reelection in 1874. He was appointed a commissioner of the State survey April 29, 1876, in which capacity he was serving when he died in

, on December 14, 1881. He was interred in Riverside Cemetery. State Senator Matthew Hale (1829–1897) was his brother.

References

External links

"An Increase of the powers of Congress under the constitution not desirable : speech of Hon. Robert S. Hale of New York in the House of Representatives, February 27, 1866"
Samuel J. May Anti-Slavery Collection,

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

.
"Annual address to the graduating class of the Law department of Columbian college, Washington, D.C."
by Hon. Robert S. Hale, of New York, June 12, 1872. Columbian University is the former name 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 ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hale, Robert S 1822 births 1881 deaths People from Chelsea, Vermont People from Elizabethtown, New York University of Vermont alumni New York (state) state court judges Regents of the University of the State of New York Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians 1860 United States presidential electors 19th-century American judges