Perkins King (January 12, 1784 – November 29, 1875) was an American lawyer, businessman, and politician 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 * ...

. Active in politics 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 ...

, Jacksonian, and

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, he served one term as 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 1829 to 1831.

Biography

King was born in

New Marlborough, Massachusetts New Marlborough is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,528 at the 2020 census. New Marlborough consists of five villages: Cla ...

on January 12, 1784, a son of Amos King and Lucy (Perkins) King. He was educated in New Marlborough, and moved to Greenville, New York in 1802.

Business career

After moving to New York, King studied law, and 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 ...

. He also became involved in business ventures, including a woolen mill.

Political career

Active in politics as a

, Jacksonian, and

, he served as Greenville's town clerk in 1815, and was

town supervisor The administrative divisions of New York are the various units of government that provide local services in the American state of New York. The state is divided into boroughs, counties, cities, towns, and villages. (The only boroughs, the f ...

from 1817 to 1820. He was a justice of the peace from 1818 to 1822. He was appointed a judge of the Greene County Court in 1823 and served until becoming First Judge in 1838. He 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 ...

(Greene Co.) in

1827 Events January–March * January 5 – The first regatta in Australia is held, taking place in Tasmania (called at the time ''Van Diemen's Land''), on the River Derwent at Hobart. * January 15 – Furman University, founded in 1826, b ...

Congress

King was elected as a Jacksonian to the Twenty-first Congress (March 4, 1829 – March 3, 1831). He did not run for reelection in 1830.

Later career and death

He served as First Judge of the Greene County Court from 1838 to 1847. King died in

Freehold, New York Freehold is a hamlet in the town of Greenville in Greene County, New York, United States. It has the ZIP Code 12431, and its own fire district. The hamlet is centered on the junction of New York State Route 32 and Greene County Route 67. ...

, November 29, 1875. He was interred in Freehold's Snyder Cemetery.

Family

In 1812, King married Polly Jackson, who died in 1849. In 1852 he married Althea Barnes, who died in 1867. With his first wife, King was the father of seven children.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Perkins 1784 births 1875 deaths New York (state) lawyers City and town clerks Town supervisors in New York (state) New York state court judges People from Greenville, Greene County, New York Politicians from Berkshire County, Massachusetts Members of the New York State Assembly Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century members of the New York State Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives