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George M. Robeson Politician

George Maxwell Robeson (March 16, 1829 – September 27, 1897) was an American Republican Party politician and lawyer from New Jersey who served as a Union army general during the American Civil War, and then as Secretary of the Navy during the Grant Administration. During the 19th Century, Sec. Robeson's seven years in office as Secretary of Navy was second in time length only to Sec. Gideon Welles's tenure. Robeson, as Secretary of Navy, was an industrious administrator and through his strong departmental leadership was able to contain the established Naval officer hierarchy. Sec. Robeson supported and developed the early stages of submarine and torpedo technology in keeping U.S. harbors safe from foreign attack. Sec. Robeson secured $50,000 in Congressional funding for the 1871 Polaris expedition led by Capt. C. F. Hall. Secretary Robeson investigated the death of Capt. Hall after the return of the Polaris crew in 1873. During Reconstruction, Sec. Robeson was a scholarly and forceful advocate of President Grant and the Radical Republican agenda to end the Southern vestiges of slavery having supported the citizenship and voting rights for the African American freedmen. In 1874, Sec. Robeson responded to the naval threat imposed by Spain during the Virginius Affair; having implemented U.S. Naval resurgence; however Congress refused to pay for the completion of the five new ships. Robeson was the subject of two Congressional investigations in 1876 and 1878 concerning profiting and bribery charges from ship building contracts. No paper trail could be adequately established and Robeson was exhonerated. Robeson served briefly as both Secretary of Navy and as ad interim Secretary of War after Secretary of War William W. Belknap abruptly resigned in 1876.Robeson, a native of New Jersey, graduated from Princeton University at the young age of 18. Robeson studied law and passed the bar in 1850. Practicing law, Robeson diligently worked his way through the legal profession and in 1858 he was appointed public prosecutor for Camden County. During the American Civil War Robeson associated with the Republican Party and was a member of the New Jersey Sanitary Commission . Appointed Brigadier General by Governor Charles S. Olden, Robeson worked to recruit enlistments to fight for the Union. After the war in 1867, Robeson was appointed New Jersey Attorney General by Gov. Marcus L. Ward. Robeson, as Attorney General, gained national attention after successfully prosecuting Bridget Durgan for the brutal murder of Mrs. Coriell. Supported by New Jersey Senator A.G. Cattell, Robeson was appointed Secretary of Navy by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1869 after Sec. Adolph E. Borie had resigned office.In March 1877, Robeson's Secretary of Navy term of office ended. In a speech to his former Navy Department staff at his Washington D.C. home Robeson candidly admitted that during his tenor he made mistakes, however the U.S. Navy had made significant advancements. Robeson was later elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in both 1878 and 1880. Robeson's grandfather was George C. Maxwell and he was nephew of John Patterson Bryan Maxwell, both having represented New Jersey in the House of Representatives. As U.S. Representative for New Jersey, Congressman Robeson served as minority leader of the Republican Party. Defeated from office by Democrat Thomas M. Ferrell in a bitter highly contested 1882 election campaign Robeson was left $60,000 in debt and forced to sell his Washington D.C. property. As a result of Robeson's financial trouble, his wife and family abandoned him traveling abroad. Robeson moved to Trenton, resumed his law practice, and lived a modest lifestyle until his death in 1897. Due to his strikingly distinguished personal traits and size, Robeson was one of the most caricatured individuals during the 19th Century by cartoonists.

Personal facts

Birth date	March 16, 1829
Birth place	United States , Oxford Furnace New Jersey
Date of death	September 27, 1897
Place of death	Trenton New Jersey , United States
Education	Princeton University
Profession	Lawyer , Politician

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