Abraham Brookins Gardner (September 2, 1819 – November 23, 1881) was a

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

attorney and businessman who served as 25th lieutenant governor of Vermont from 1865 to 1867.

Early life and business career

Abraham Brookins Gardner was born in

Pownal, Vermont Pownal is a New England town, town in Bennington County, Vermont, Bennington County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town population was 3,258. The town of Pownal includes the villages of Pownal (CDP) ...

, on September 2, 1819. He was the son of David and Eunice (Wright) Gardner. He graduated

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

from

Union College Union College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the s ...

in 1842, where he was a member of the

Delta Upsilon Delta Upsilon (), commonly known as DU, is a collegiate men's fraternity founded on November 4, 1834, at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It is the sixth-oldest, all-male, college Greek-letter organization founded in North America ...

fraternity. Gardner then studied law and became an attorney and business owner in

Bennington, Vermont Bennington is a New England town, town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester (town), Vermont, Manchester. As of the 2020 United States Census, US Cens ...

, including serving as

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the Eagle

Square In geometry, a square is a regular polygon, regular quadrilateral. It has four straight sides of equal length and four equal angles. Squares are special cases of rectangles, which have four equal angles, and of rhombuses, which have four equal si ...

Manufacturing Company and the Bennington and Rutland Railroad.

Political career

A Republican, he was Register of Probate for the Bennington District from 1848 to 1857,

State's Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

from 1855 to 1857, and Vermont's Banking Commissioner from 1859 to 1860. From 1860 to 1865 Gardner served in the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives a ...

, and he was

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from 1863 to 1865. He was Lieutenant Governor from 1865 to 1867, and also served as a member of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...

Later life

Gardner served in the

Vermont Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members elected from multi-member districts. Each senator repre ...

from 1870 to 1872, and in 1872 was an unsuccessful candidate for

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

as the fusion candidate of Democrats and Liberal Republican backers of

Horace Greeley Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811 – November 29, 1872) was an American newspaper editor and publisher who was the founder and newspaper editor, editor of the ''New-York Tribune''. Long active in politics, he served briefly as a congres ...

for

. Later in the 1870s he served as a member of the Bennington Battle Monument Commission.

Death and burial

Gardner died in Bennington on November 23, 1881. He was buried in Old Bennington Cemetery.

Other

His first name sometimes appears in records as Abram and his middle name is sometimes written as "Brooks" or "Brookings". Several of Gardner's relatives shared the Abraham B. Gardner name, including one who lived from January 6, 1858, to January 2, 1914, and was a member of the

.Vermont Death Records, 1909–2008, Record for Abraham B. Gardner (1858–1914). Retrieved January 2, 2012

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardner, Abraham B. 1819 births 1881 deaths Vermont lawyers State's attorneys in Vermont Republican Party members of the Vermont House of Representatives Speakers of the Vermont House of Representatives Lieutenant governors of Vermont Republican Party Vermont state senators Politicians from Bennington, Vermont Vermont state court judges 19th-century Vermont state court judges 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century members of the Vermont General Assembly