Representative Philip Burrill Low

Philip Burrill Low (May 6, 1836 – August 23, 1912) was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New York who served two terms in Congress from 1895 to 1899. He was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, where he attended the public schools and was graduated from high school. His early years in Massachusetts provided the foundation for a later career that combined military service, commercial enterprise, and national legislative responsibilities.

During the American Civil War, Low volunteered for service in the United States Navy. He was appointed an acting ensign and served in the North Atlantic Squadron during 1862 and 1863, a period in which that squadron was heavily engaged in blockading Confederate ports and supporting Union operations along the Atlantic seaboard. His naval service placed him within one of the principal theaters of Union maritime activity and exposed him to the logistical and commercial dimensions of naval warfare that would later inform his civilian pursuits.

After resigning from the Navy, Low returned to civilian life and engaged in commercial pursuits in Boston, Massachusetts. He remained in Boston until 1865, when he moved to New York City. In New York he became closely identified with shipping and maritime interests, entering a sector that was central to the city’s emergence as a leading national and international port. Through his work in maritime commerce, he developed experience in trade, transportation, and the economic infrastructure that underpinned the expanding industrial economy of the late nineteenth century.

Low’s prominence in business and his alignment with Republican economic and political principles led to his election to Congress. He was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-fourth and Fifty-fifth Congresses, serving from March 4, 1895, to March 3, 1899, as a Representative from New York. His service in the House of Representatives occurred during a significant period in American history marked by debates over tariffs, currency, and the nation’s growing industrial and commercial power. As a member of the House, Low participated in the legislative process and represented the interests of his New York constituents, bringing to his work the perspective of a businessman with deep ties to the shipping and maritime community.

During his two terms in Congress, Low contributed to the deliberations of the Republican majority as it addressed issues of economic policy, infrastructure, and the federal government’s role in regulating commerce. His background in maritime affairs would have been particularly relevant to questions involving ports, navigation, and interstate and international trade. Although specific committee assignments and legislative initiatives are not detailed in surviving summaries, his tenure coincided with the lead-up to the Spanish–American War and with continuing efforts to shape policies favorable to American industry and commerce.

In 1898, Low was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection to the Fifty-sixth Congress, bringing his formal congressional service to a close on March 3, 1899. After leaving the House of Representatives, he returned to New York City and resumed his activities in maritime pursuits. He continued to be identified with the shipping and commercial interests that had defined his precongressional career, remaining active in the city’s business life during a period when New York was consolidating its position as the nation’s principal port and financial center.

Philip Burrill Low lived in New York City until his death there on August 23, 1912. He was interred in Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, one of New York’s major cemeteries and the resting place of many prominent figures in the city’s political and commercial history. His life reflected the trajectory of a nineteenth-century American who combined military service, private enterprise, and public office, and whose congressional tenure formed part of the broader Republican stewardship of national policy in the late nineteenth century.