James Porter (April 18, 1787 – February 7, 1839) was a

United States representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. He was born in

Williamstown, Massachusetts Williamstown is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It shares a border with Vermont to the north and New York to the west. Located in Berkshire County, the town is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts metropolitan statis ...

on April 18, 1787. He graduated from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

in 1810, studied law, was admitted to the bar, and commenced practice in

Skaneateles, New York Skaneateles ( , ) is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York (state), New York, United States. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 7,112. The name is from the Iroquois term ...

. Porter was a 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 Ass ...

and was elected as a

Democratic-Republican The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed l ...

to the Fifteenth Congress (March 4, 1817 – March 3, 1819). He was not a candidate for renomination and resumed the practice of law. He served as a surrogate of

Onondaga County Onondaga County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 476,516. The county seat is Syracuse. The county is part of the Central New York region of the state. Onondaga County is the core of the ...

, then moved to Albany and served as a register of the court of chancery until his death there on February 7, 1839. His interment was in Greenwood Cemetery in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, James 1787 births 1839 deaths Williams College alumni People from Williamstown, Massachusetts Politicians from Berkshire County, Massachusetts People from Skaneateles, New York Politicians from Albany, New York Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Lawyers from Albany, New York 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century members of the New York State Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives