Abijah Mann

Abijah Mann Jr. (September 24, 1793 – September 6, 1868) was an American politician who served two terms as a U.S. Representative from New York from 1833 to 1837. He was born in Fairfield, Herkimer County, New York, where he attended the common schools. Little is recorded about his parents or early family life, but he grew up in a rural community in central New York during the early years of the republic, an environment that shaped his later engagement in local and state politics.

After completing his schooling, Mann engaged in mercantile pursuits in Fairfield, establishing himself in local business and community affairs. He also served as a justice of the peace, a position that reflected both his standing in the community and his early involvement in public service. His reliability and political alignment with the Jacksonian movement led to his appointment by President Andrew Jackson as postmaster of Fairfield, a federal position he held from May 28, 1830, to January 16, 1833. During this period he combined commercial activity with public duties, gaining experience in administration and local governance.

Mann’s formal political career began in the New York State Assembly, where he served multiple terms. He was a member of the Assembly in 1828, 1829, and 1830, representing his region during a time of expanding democratic participation and intense party organization in New York. He returned to the Assembly again in 1838, reflecting his continued influence in state politics even after his service in Congress. His legislative work at the state level helped establish him as a committed Jacksonian Democrat and prepared him for national office.

As a member of the Jackson Party representing New York, Mann was elected as a Jacksonian to the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Congresses, serving as a U.S. Representative from March 4, 1833, to March 3, 1837. His two terms in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history marked by debates over the Bank of the United States, internal improvements, and the evolving party system. During these years he participated in the legislative process and the broader democratic experiment of the Jacksonian era, representing the interests of his New York constituents in the House of Representatives.

After leaving Congress in 1837, Mann remained active in public life. He moved to New York City, where he continued his legal and political pursuits. In the shifting political climate of the 1850s, he aligned himself with emerging anti-slavery and reform elements that coalesced into the Republican Party. He was an unsuccessful candidate for Attorney General of New York in the state election of 1855, and in 1856 he served as a delegate to the Republican state convention, indicating his transition from Jacksonian Democrat to early Republican. In 1857 he was an unsuccessful candidate for the New York State Senate, but these campaigns demonstrated his sustained engagement with public affairs over several decades.

In his later years, Mann maintained his connections to New York politics and to his extended family, which included other notable public figures. His brother, Charles A. Mann (1803–1860), served as a state senator in New York, and his nephew, Dr. Matthew Derbyshire Mann (1845–1921), later gained prominence in the medical profession. Abijah Mann Jr. died in Auburn, New York, on September 6, 1868, closing a long career that spanned local, state, and national service during a transformative era in American political history.