Arphaxed Loomis (April 9, 1798September 15, 1885) was an American lawyer and judge. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing New York's 16th district during the 25th Congress (1837–1839). His unusual first name is from a character in the Bible, a grandson of Noah named Arphacshad.

Early career

Born in

Winsted, Connecticut Winsted is a census-designated place and an incorporated city in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the town of Winchester. The population of Winsted was 7,712 at the 2010 census, out of 11,242 in the entire town of Wi ...

, Loomis moved to New York in 1801 with his parents, who settled upon a farm in the town of

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

, Herkimer County. He attended the common schools and

Fairfield Academy Fairfield Academy was an academy that existed for nearly one hundred years in the Town of Fairfield, Herkimer County, New York. Founding It was organized as an academy for men in 1802, when the community was an active local manufacturing center. ...

Fairfield, New York Fairfield is a town in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The population was 1,627 at the 2010 census. The town is named after Fairfield, Connecticut. The town is north of the village of Herkimer and east of Utica. The hamlet of Fairfiel ...

. He studied law, 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 ...

at Albany in 1822 and commenced practice at

Sackets Harbor, New York Sackets Harbor (earlier spelled Sacketts Harbor) is a village in Jefferson County, New York, United States, on Lake Ontario. The population was 1,450 at the 2010 census. The village was named after land developer and owner Augustus Sackett, who ...

, the same year.

Career

He returned to Salisbury in 1825, but later in that year moved to

Little Falls, New York Little Falls is a city in Herkimer County, New York. The population was 4,946 at the time of the 2010 census, which is the second-smallest city population in the state, ahead of only the city of Sherrill. The city is built on both sides of the ...

, and continued the practice of his profession. He was surrogate of Herkimer County from 1828 to 1836, and as commissioner to investigate the State prisons in 1834. He was county judge of Herkimer County in 1835–1840.

Congress

Loomis was elected as a Democrat to the

Twenty-fifth Congress The 25th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 183 ...

(March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1839). He served as chairman of the

Committee on Patents The United States Senate Committee on Patents was a committee of the United States Senate. It was established September 7, 1837 as the "Committee on Patents and the Patent Office" when the Senate approved a resolution of Henry Hubbard of Kentucky ...

(Twenty-fifth Congress). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1838.

Later career

He served as member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

in 1841 and 1842. He served as a member of the State

constitutional convention Constitutional convention may refer to: * Constitutional convention (political custom), an informal and uncodified procedural agreement *Constitutional convention (political meeting), a meeting of delegates to adopt a new constitution or revise an e ...

in 1846. He served as a member of the commission to revise, abridge, and simplify

pleadings In law as practiced in countries that follow the English models, a pleading is a formal written statement of a party's claims or defenses to another party's claims in a civil action. The parties' pleadings in a case define the issues to be adjud ...

and proceedings in

civil action - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil acti ...

s in 1847. He was again a member of the New York State Assembly in 1853 and 1854. He served as a delegate to the Democratic State conventions in 1861 and 1863.

Death and burial

He died at

, September 15, 1885. He was interred in the Church Street Cemetery.

References and sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loomis, Arphaxed 1798 births 1885 deaths New York (state) state court judges People from Winsted, Connecticut People from Salisbury, Herkimer County, New York Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) People from Little Falls, New York 19th-century American legislators 19th-century American judges