John Conness

John Conness
John Conness
	Milton S. Latham
Succeeded by	Eugene Casserly
Personal details
Born	September 22, 1821; Abbey, County Galway, Ireland
Died	January 10, 1909 (aged 87); Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts
Political party	Democratic Party, Union Republican
Signature

John Conness (September 22, 1821 – January 10, 1909) was an Irish-born American businessman who served as a

civil rights

cost him his constituency.

Early life and education

Born in Abbey, County Galway, Ireland, on September 22, 1821, Conness was the youngest of fourteen children. His father was Walter Conness, whom John described as "a very dignified and intellectual man, one whom men of all positions came to for counsel: being also a man of rare courage and independence."

Immigration and career

In 1836 Conness arrived in the United States at age 15 as an

pianofortes and also worked as a merchant. He emigrated to California in 1849 to join the excitement and promise of the Gold Rush.^[1]

He was among the thousands of "forty-niners" attracted by the

Sierra Nevada, and the hundreds of thousands who quickly followed. For two years, he mined Mormon Island, and the Middle Fork of the American River, and was interested in the industry for the rest of his life. Having made a stake, he settled in the new community of Georgetown and operated a store selling supplies to miners.^[2]

The state was bustling with new people. In the 1850s, the

Union Democratic

candidate for governor in the 1861 election.

After losing to John G. Downey in the first instance and Leland Stanford in the second, Conness was chosen by the legislature to fill the full term of US Senator from California for the term beginning in 1863. (Senators were still selected by state legislatures then.) US Senator John Conness introduced the bill to protect the land that became Yosemite National Park.

A Douglas Democrat who later became a Union Republican while serving in the Senate, Conness earned President Abraham Lincoln's respect. The two men worked together on legislation to protect Yosemite National Park and Mariposa Grove. In addition, Conness gave support to Lincoln's war measures.^[4] Lincoln once said of Conness that he "is habitually careful not to say what he does not know," and described him on another occasion as "one of our United States Senators, of high standing, whom I cheerfully endorse."

Conness was with colleagues senators

Secretary of State William H. Seward, the three men ran to Seward's lodgings. There they were turned away by a doctor who was attending to Seward, and they ran to the White House, where they heard the news that Lincoln had been shot. Conness declared that 'this is a conspiracy to murder the entire cabinet' and directed soldiers to go protect Secretary of War Edwin Stanton."^[5] Conness had the honor of being a pallbearer at Lincoln's funeral on April 19, 1865.^[5]

At the beginning of

civil rights. At a time of rising anti-Chinese feelings in California, his was an unusual and unpopular view, and he lost support of his party. He strongly believed in justice for all immigrants.^[3]

After his Senate term, in 1869 Conness relocated to

Boston, Massachusetts, a center of Irish-American life. He lived there the remainder of his life, for nearly four decades. He died in an insane asylum in Jamaica Plain, now part of Boston.^[6] After his death, he was buried in Cedar Grove Cemetery in Dorchester, Boston.^[1]

Legacy and honors

Conness supported the federal land grants for Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove, founding what later became the Yosemite National Park.
Mount Conness and Conness Creek in the Sierra Nevada were named in his honor.
Conness voted for the amendments to abolish slavery and grant freedmen citizenship.
He supported immigration and civil rights for Chinese in California.
Last surviving pall bearer of Abraham Lincoln.

Notes

^ ^a ^b This article incorporates public domain material from CONNESS, John. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved January 9, 2009.
^ Conness 1904, pp. 110–111.
^ ^a ^b Denning 2008.
^ Denning 2008, p. 14.
^ ^a ^b Denning 2008, p. 15.
^ Denning 2008, p. 12.

References

Conness, John (1904). "Autobiography and Reminiscence of John Conness, San Francisco". Autobiographies and Reminiscences of California Pioneers. Vol. 7. University of California. Retrieved November 18, 2009.
Denning, Robert (September 2008). "A fragile machine: California senator John Conness". California History. 85 (4). FindArticles.com: 26–73.
JSTOR 40495176. Archived from the original
on January 19, 2012. Retrieved November 18, 2009.

External links

John Conness at Find a Grave

Party political offices
Preceded by John Currey	Democratic nominee for Governor of California 1861	Succeeded by John G. Downey
U.S. Senate
Preceded by Milton S. Latham	U.S. senator (Class 1) from California March 4, 1863 – March 4, 1869 Served alongside: James A. McDougall, Cornelius Cole	Succeeded by Eugene Casserly
Honorary titles
Preceded by Edmund Pettus	Oldest living U.S. senator July 27, 1907 – January 10, 1909	Succeeded by Cornelius Cole

[bioguide-1] This article incorporates public domain material from CONNESS, John. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved January 9, 2009.

[FOOTNOTEConness1904110–111-2] Conness 1904, pp. 110–111.

[FOOTNOTEDenning2008-3] Denning 2008.

[FOOTNOTEDenning200814-4] Denning 2008, p. 14.

[FOOTNOTEDenning200815-5] Denning 2008, p. 15.

[FOOTNOTEDenning200812-6] Denning 2008, p. 12.

[1]

[2]

[4]

[5]

[3]

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v t e United States senators from California
Class 1	Frémont Weller Broderick Haun Latham Conness Casserly Hager Booth Miller Hearst Williams Hearst Felton White Bard Flint Works Johnson Knowland Engle Salinger Murphy Tunney Hayakawa Wilson Seymour Feinstein Butler
Class 3	Gwin McDougall Cole Sargent Farley Stanford Perkins Phelan Shortridge McAdoo Storke Downey Nixon Kuchel Cranston Boxer Harris Padilla

Authority control databases
International	FAST ISNI VIAF
National	United States
People	US Congress
Other	SNAC