Peter Joseph WAGNER, Congress, NY (1795-1884)

WAGNER Peter Joseph , a Representative from New York; born at Wagners Hollow in the town of Palatine, Montgomery County, N.Y., August 14, 1795; moved to Fort Plain, N.Y., with his parents in 1805; completed preparatory studies; attended Fairfield Academy in 1810 and 1811; was graduated from Union College, Schenectady, N.Y., in 1816; studied law; was admitted to the bar in September 1819 and commenced practice at Fort Plain, N.Y.; also engaged in agricultural pursuits and banking; unsuccessful candidate for election in 1834 to the Twenty-fourth Congress; elected as a Whig to the Twenty-sixth Congress (March 4, 1839-March 3, 1841); chairman, Committee on Expenditures in the Department of War (Twenty-sixth Congress); continued the practice of law at Fort Plain until May 1873, when he retired; died at Fort Plain, Montgomery County, N.Y., September 13, 1884; interment in Fort Plain Cemetery.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present