James Fisk (politician)

Fisk was born in Greenwich, in what was then the Province of Massachusetts Bay, the son of Stephen Fisk and Anna Bradish. His father died when Fisk was a year old, and he was largely self-educated.{{cite web|url= http://politicalgraveyard.com/families/13856.html|title= James Fisk (1763–1844)|publisher= The Political Graveyard|access-date= November 15, 2012|archive-date= December 5, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201205002328/http://politicalgraveyard.com/families/13856.html|url-status= dead}} As a teenager, he worked on his family's farm.

He served in the Revolutionary War from 1779 to 1782 as a private in Captain Willis' Company, Colonel Brooks' Regiment, a unit of the Massachusetts Militia.

After the war, he was a farmer in Greenwich. In 1785, Fisk served as a member of the Massachusetts General Court.{{cite book|title=Journal of the Senate, Volume 130|year=1909|publisher=Commonwealth of Massachusetts.|pages=170|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1mcOAAAAYAAJ&q=james+fisk++&pg=PA914}} Fisk was ordained as a Universalist minister, and preached occasionally. He married Priscilla West in 1786.

In 1798, Fisk moved to what is now Barre City, Vermont, but was then a village in the Town of Barre. While owning and operating a farm, Fisk received his credentials as a Universalist minister and began to preach. He also studied law, was admitted to the bar, and began the practice of law as the first attorney in Barre.{{cite web|url= http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=f000154|title=FISK, James, (1763–1844)|publisher= Biographical Directory of the United States Congress|access-date= November 15, 2012}} In 1799 he was elected to the town's board of selectmen.

Fisk represented Barre in the Vermont House of Representatives from 1800 to 1805, 1809 to 1810 and in 1815.{{cite book|last=Crockett|first=Walter Hill|title=Vermont: the Green mountain state, Volume 2|year=1921|publisher=The Century history company, inc.|location=1921|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_UXYUAAAAYAAJ/page/n630 593]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_UXYUAAAAYAAJ|quote=james fisk judge of the Orange County, Vermont Court.}} He was judge of the Orange County, Vermont Court from 1802 to 1809 and in 1816.{{cite book|title=Gazetteer of Washington County, Vt., 1783–1889|year=1889|publisher=The Syracuse journal company, printers|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_fxf14GRvwkoC/page/n62 59]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_fxf14GRvwkoC|quote=james fisk judge of the Orange County, Vermont Court.}} In 1803, he was Orange County's member of the commission to choose a permanent site for the state capital, which selected Montpelier In 1804, he served as chairman of the commission that attempted to settle the question of the Vermont-Canada boundary.

In 1804, Fisk was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a Democratic-Republican. He was reelected in 1806, and served two terms, March 4, 1805, to March 3, 1809.{{cite web|url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/james_fisk/404109|title= Sen. James Fisk|publisher= govtrack.us|access-date= November 15, 2012}} He ran unsuccessfully for reelection in 1808.

In 1810, Fiske was elected again to the House. He was reelected in 1812, and served from March 4, 1811, to March 3, 1815.{{cite web|url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/james_fisk/404109|title= Sen. James Fisk|publisher= govtrack.us|access-date= November 15, 2012}} He was chairman of the Committee on Elections.

Fisk was appointed United States Judge for the Territory of Indiana in 1812 by President James Madison,{{cite web|url= http://indylaw.indiana.edu/ilr/pdf/vol37p729.pdf|title= Federal Judges for the Indiana Territory |publisher= Indiana.edu |access-date= November 15, 2012}} but declined the appointment. He was a delegate to the state constitutional convention in 1814, and served as judge of the Supreme Court of Vermont from 1815 to 1816.{{cite book|last=Thompson|first=Zadock|title=History Of Vermont, Natural, Civil And Statistical, In Three Parts, With A Few Map Of The State, And 200 Engravings|year=1842|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_M6xFv628ziMC/page/n129 124]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_M6xFv628ziMC|quote=james fisk supreme Court of Vermont.}}

In 1817, Fisk was elected to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Dudley Chase. He served from November 4, 1817, until resigning on January 8, 1818{{cite book|last=Dodge|first=Andrew R.|title=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774–2005: The Continental Congress, September 5, 1774, to October 21, 1788, and the Congress of the United States, from the First Through the One Hundred Eighth Congresses, March 4, 1789, to January 3, 2005|year=2005|publisher=Government Printing Office|pages=85|isbn=9780160731761|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v9MBIctdjjkC&q=james+fisk+elected+senator+vt&pg=PA85}}{{cite web|url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/james_fisk/404109|title= Sen. James Fisk|publisher= govtrack.us|access-date= November 15, 2012}} to become U.S. collector of customs for the district of Vermont. He served from 1818 until 1826,{{cite book|last=Lanman|first=Charles Lanman|title=Biographical Annals of the Civil Government of the United States|year=1887|publisher=J.M. Morrison|pages=[https://archive.org/details/biographicalann01morrgoog/page/n205 171]|url=https://archive.org/details/biographicalann01morrgoog|quote=fisk appointed United States Judge for the Territory of Indiana.}} moved to Swanton, Vermont, in 1819 so that he could be closer to the border with Canada and the crossing points where customs were paid.

Fisk died in Swanton on November 17, 1844.

Following his Revolutionary War service, Fisk married Priscilla West (1763–1840).

Fisk's daughter Parma was the wife of Orlando Stevens, who served as Fisk's deputy collector, and was later a member of the legislatures of both Vermont and Minnesota.{{cite book |last1=Crafts |first1=James M. |last2=Crafts |first2=William Francis |date=1893 |title=The Crafts Family: A Genealogical and Biographical History of the Descendants of Griffin and Alice Craft of Roxbury, Mass., 1630–1890 |url=https://archive.org/details/craftsfamilyage00crafgoog |location=Northampton, MA |publisher=Gazette Printing Company |page=[https://archive.org/details/craftsfamilyage00crafgoog/page/n256 224] |ref={{sfnRef|The Crafts Family}}}}

{{reflist}}

• "Gazetteer of Washington County, Vt., 1783–1889" by William Adams, The Syracuse Journal Company Printers, 1899

• [http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=f000154 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress]
• {{Find a Grave|6892748}}
• [http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/james_fisk/404109 govtrack.us: Sen. James Fisk]
• [http://politicalgraveyard.com/families/13856.html The Political Graveyard: James Fisk (1763-1844)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205002328/http://politicalgraveyard.com/families/13856.html |date=December 5, 2020 }}

{{s-start}}

{{s-par|us-hs}}

{{US House succession box

| state=Vermont

| district=3

| before=William Chamberlain | after=William Chamberlain | years=1805–1809}}

{{US House succession box

| state=Vermont

| district=3

| before=William Chamberlain | after=Chauncey Langdon | years=1811–1815}}

{{s-par|us-sen}}

{{U.S. Senator box

| state=Vermont

| class=3

| before=Dudley Chase

|after=William A. Palmer

|years=1817—1818

|alongside=Isaac Tichenor}}

{{s-end}}

{{USSenVT}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fisk, James}}

Category:1763 births

Category:1844 deaths

Category:People from Greenwich, Massachusetts

Category:Members of the Universalist Church of America

Category:Members of the Vermont House of Representatives

Category:United States senators from Vermont

Category:Democratic-Republican Party United States senators

Category:Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court

Category:Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont

Category:19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives

Category:19th-century United States senators

Category:19th-century members of the Vermont General Assembly