American Postmaster General (1767-1822)

Gideon Granger (July 19, 1767 – December 31, 1822) was an early American politician and lawyer. He was the father of fellow Postmaster General and U.S. Representative Francis Granger.

Contents

• 1 Early life
• 2 Career
• 3 Personal life
• 4 References
• 5 External links

Early life

Granger was born in Suffield, Connecticut on July 19, 1767. He was the son of Gideon Granger (1735–1800) and Tryphosia (née Kent) Granger (1738–1796).

He attended and graduated from Yale University and became a lawyer.

Career

Granger was considered a brilliant political essayist. Using the pseudonyms Algernon Sydney and Epaminondas many of his writings, defending Jeffersonian principles, were published in many pamphlets.

He was a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives and ran unsuccessfully for the United States Congress in 1798. A staunch supporter of Thomas Jefferson, Granger was appointed as Postmaster General at the start of his term in 1801. He served in this post until 1814 when Jefferson's successor, James Madison, replaced him. He is the longest serving Postmaster General as of 2022.

In 1802, Granger convinced Congress to p* a law making postal work white-only. He was concerned that African-American mail carriers could potentially orchestrate an uprising, such as had occurred in Haiti. The law held for almost sixty years.

After leaving Washington, D.C., Granger settled in Canandaigua, New York, where he built a homestead that would be "unrivaled in all the nation" from which he could administer the many land tracts he had acquired farther to the west. Today his home is a museum. He became a member of the New York Senate and continued to be influential in politics and law including being a key figure in the Erie C* project.

Personal life

On June 14, 1790, Granger was married to Mindwell Pease (1770–1860), the daughter of Joseph Pease. Together, they were the parents of three sons, including:

• Francis Granger (1792–1868), who married Cornelia Rutsen Van Rensselaer (1798–1823), the granddaughter of Brigadier General Robert Van Rensselaer, who was a member of the New York Provincial Congress from 1775 to 1777 and later a member of the New York State *embly in the 1st, 2nd and 4th New York State Legislatures.
• John Albert Granger (1795–1870), who married Harriet Jackson (1804–1868), the daughter of Amasa Jackson, the first president of the Union Bank of New York, and Mary (née Phelps) Jackson, the only daughter and heiress of Oliver Phelps. Her paternal grandfather was General Michael Jackson, who commanded a regiment of minutemen in the Battle of Lexington.

Ill health forced him to retire early in 1821 and he died the next year on December 31, 1822. He was interred in Woodlawn Cemetery in Canandaigua. Granger is the namesake of Granger Township, Ohio.

References

External links

• Granger Homestead and Carriage Museum
• Gideon Granger at Find a Grave