The New Student's Reference Work/Fish, Hamilton

Fish, Hamilton, American diplomatist, was born at New York on Aug. 3, 1808, graduated at Columbia College, and was admitted to the bar in 1830. He was a Whig in politics, was elected a congressman in 1842, lieutenant-governor of New York in 1847 and governor in 1848. In 1851 he was returned to the United States senate, and acted with the Republican party. From 1869 to 1877 he was secretary of state under Grant, signing, as one of the commissioners, the Washington treaty of 1871, which settled the Alabama question. He died at Garrison's, N. Y. on Sept. 7, 1893.