Clinton Dugald MacDougall

Clinton Dugald MacDougall (June 14, 1839 – May 24, 1914) was a United States Representative from New York who served two terms in the House of Representatives from 1873 to 1877. A member of the Republican Party, he participated actively in the legislative process during a significant period in American history, representing the interests of his constituents in New York as the nation continued to grapple with the political, economic, and social consequences of the Civil War and Reconstruction.

MacDougall’s service in Congress began with his election to the Forty-third Congress, followed by reelection to the Forty-fourth Congress. During these two consecutive terms, he contributed to debates and legislation in an era marked by efforts to stabilize the postwar economy, address issues of civil rights and federal authority, and manage the continuing integration of formerly seceded states into the political life of the Union. As a Republican, his work in the House aligned him with the party that had led the Union during the Civil War and was then engaged in shaping national policy in its aftermath.

Representing New York, MacDougall took part in the democratic process at the federal level, serving as a link between his district and the national government. His role required attention to both local concerns in New York and broader national questions before Congress. While specific committee assignments and sponsored measures are not detailed in the surviving summary, his tenure coincided with important legislative discussions on finance, infrastructure, and governance that defined the mid-1870s.

MacDougall’s congressional career concluded in 1877, after which he left the House of Representatives. His two terms placed him among the cohort of Reconstruction-era legislators whose work helped transition the United States from wartime emergency to a more stable peacetime political order. He remained identified in public records as a former United States representative from New York until his death on May 24, 1914, his name preserved in the official Biographical Directory of the United States Congress as part of the historical record of nineteenth-century American lawmakers.