Francis Granger

Francis Granger (December 1, 1792 – August 31, 1868) was an American politician who represented Ontario County, New York, in the United States House of Representatives for three non-consecutive terms. He was a leading figure in the state and national Whig Party, particularly in its moderate-conservative faction. He served as a Whig vice presidential nominee on the party's multi-candidate 1836 ticket and, in that role, became the only person to ever lose a contingent election for the vice presidency in the U.S. Senate. He also served briefly in 1841 as United States Postmaster General in the cabinet of William Henry Harrison. In 1856, he became the final Whig Party chairman before the party's collapse, after which he joined the Constitutional Union Party. Early life Granger was born in Suffield, Connecticut, on December 1, 1792. Granger was born into a prominent political family, with his father, Gideon Granger, serving in the Connecticut House of Representatives before being appointed by Thomas Jefferson as the longest serving Postmaster General in United States history. His mother was Mindwell (née Pease) Granger (1770–1860) and his first cousin, Amos Phelps Granger, also served two terms in the United States House of Representatives. Granger pursued classical studies at and graduated from Yale College in 1811. He then moved with his father to Canandaigua, New York, in 1814, where he studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1816 and commenced practice. Career Granger started his own political career as a member of the New York State Assembly from 1826 to 1828 and from 1830 to 1832. He ran unsuccessful campaigns for Lieutenant Governor of New York in 1828, and for Governor of New York in both 1830 and 1832 with the National Republican Party.