Representative John Godfrey Schumaker

John Godfrey Schumaker (June 27, 1826 – November 23, 1905) was an American lawyer and Democratic politician who served as a United States Representative from New York during the late 1860s and 1870s. Over the course of three terms in the House of Representatives, from 1869 to 1871 and again from 1873 to 1877, he contributed to the legislative process during a significant period in American history, representing the interests of his New York constituents during the era of Reconstruction.

Schumaker was born on June 27, 1826, in Claverack, Columbia County, New York. He pursued preparatory studies at Lenox Academy in Massachusetts, an institution that prepared students for professional and collegiate work. After completing his studies there, he turned to the law, reading law in the traditional manner of the time.

He was admitted to the bar in 1847 and commenced the practice of law in New York. In 1853, Schumaker moved to Brooklyn, in Kings County, where he continued his legal career and quickly became active in local public affairs. He served as district attorney for Kings County from 1856 to 1859, a role in which he was responsible for prosecuting criminal cases on behalf of the county. He later served as corporation counsel for the city of Brooklyn from 1862 to 1864, acting as the chief legal adviser to the municipal government and representing the city in legal matters.

In addition to his local offices, Schumaker played a recurring role in New York State constitutional and party politics. He was a member of the New York State constitutional conventions of 1862, 1867, and 1894, participating in deliberations over the structure and governance of the state. He was also a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1864, reflecting his prominence within the Democratic Party at both the state and national levels.

Schumaker was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-first Congress, serving his first term in the United States House of Representatives from March 4, 1869, to March 3, 1871. Although some accounts describe this initial service as a single term, his overall congressional career encompassed three terms in office. After choosing not to be a candidate for renomination in 1870, he returned to national politics two years later and was elected again to the Forty-third and Forty-fourth Congresses. He served these additional terms from March 4, 1873, to March 3, 1877. During these years in Congress, Schumaker participated in the democratic process at the federal level, contributing to legislative debates and representing the interests of his New York district during the closing years of Reconstruction and the beginning of the post-Reconstruction era. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1876 to the Forty-fifth Congress.

Following the conclusion of his congressional service in 1877, Schumaker resumed the practice of law in Brooklyn. He continued his professional and civic engagement there for the remainder of his life, maintaining his standing as an experienced attorney and former public official. John Godfrey Schumaker died in Brooklyn on November 23, 1905. He was interred in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York, a resting place for many of the city’s notable figures.