Josiah Gardner Abbott

Who was Josiah Gardner Abbott?

Josiah Gardner Abbott was an American politician who served in the Massachusetts General Court and as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts.

Abbott was born in Chelmsford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, and attended the Chelmsford Academy in Concord. He graduated from Harvard University in 1832 with an LL.D. degree, and then attended Williams College in Williamstown.

Following his schooling, Abbott worked as a teacher and a lawyer, then became a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1836 and a member of the Massachusetts State Senate from 1841 to 1842. He was an aide to Governor Marcus Morton in 1843. From 1850 to 1855 he was a master in chancery. He also served as a member of the Massachusetts state constitutional convention, justice of the superior court for Suffolk County, an overseer of Harvard University, and several times was the unsuccessful Democratic candidate for United States Senator.

In 1860, Abbott declined an appointment to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, and in 1861 declined the Democratic nomination for state attorney general. He finally was victorious as a Democratic candidate for the United States House of Representatives, and served from July 28, 1876 to March 3, 1877. He was a member of the Electoral Commission created by the act of Congress approved January 29, 1877, to decide the presidential election of 1876.