| Christopher Morgan | |
| Office1: | Member of U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 24th district |
| Termstart1: | March 4, 1839 |
| Termend1: | March 3, 1843 |
| Predecessor1: | William H. Noble |
| Successor1: | Horace Wheaton |
| Office2: | Secretary of State of New York |
| Term Start2: | January 1, 1848 |
| Term End2: | December 31, 1851 |
| Governor2: | John Young Hamilton Fish Washington Hunt |
| Predecessor2: | Nathaniel S. Benton |
| Successor2: | Henry S. Randall |
| Office3: | Mayor of Auburn, New York |
| Term Start3: | 1860 |
| Term End3: | 1861 |
| Predecessor3: | Lansing Briggs |
| Successor3: | George Humphreys |
| Birth Date: | 4 June 1808 |
| Birth Place: | Aurora, New York |
| Death Place: | Auburn, New York |
| Resting Place: | Fort Hill Cemetery, Auburn, New York |
| Spouse: | Mary Elizabeth Pitney (m. 1832-1877, his death) |
| Children: | 4 |
| Relations: | Edwin Barber Morgan (brother) Noyes Barber (uncle) |
| Party: | Whig (before 1855) Republican (from 1855) |
| Education: | Yale College |
| Profession: | Attorney |
Christopher Morgan (June 4, 1808 - April 3, 1877) was an American attorney and politician from Auburn, New York. He was most notable for his service as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1839 to 1843.
Morgan was born in Aurora, New York on June 4, 1808, a son of Christopher Morgan (1777-1834) and Nancy (Barber) Morgan.[1] [2] He was educated in Cayuga County and attended Yale College, from which he graduated in 1830.[2]
He began to study law with an attorney in Aurora, and completed his studies with Elijah Miller and William H. Seward in Auburn.[3] Morgan was then admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Aurora.[2]
Morgan was elected as a Whig to represent the 24th District in the Twenty-sixth and Twenty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1839 – March 3, 1843).[2] After redistricting following the 1840 U.S. Census, Morgan ran for reelection to the Twenty-eighth Congress in the 25th District in 1842, and was defeated by George O. Rathbun.[4] In the 24th District, Morgan was succeeded by Horace Wheaton.[4]
He moved to Auburn in 1843 and practiced law with Seward and Samuel Blatchford as Morgan, Blatchford & Seward from 1844 to 1847.[3] He was Secretary of State of New York from 1847 to 1851, which included the additional duty of Superintendent of the New York public schools.[2] After leaving office he resumed the practice of law in Auburn.[2]
He became a Republican at the party's organization in the mid-1850s. He served as mayor of Auburn from 1860 to 1861, and was a Trustee of the State lunatic asylum in Utica, New York.[2]
Morgan died in Auburn on April 3, 1877.[5] He was buried at Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn.[6]
In 1832, Morgan married Mary Elizabeth Pitney (1813-1893) of Auburn.[1] They were the parents of a son who did not live to adulthood and three daughters: Cornelia Louise (b. 1834), the wife of C. Eugene Barber; Mary Elizabeth (b. 1835), the wife of William C. Barber; Joseph Pitney (1839-1841); and Frances Adelaide Morgan (b. 1841), the wife of William Beasley Benson.[1]
Morgan was the brother of Edwin Barber Morgan and nephew of Noyes Barber.[1] [7]