Henry J. Scudder Explained

State:	New York
District:	1st
Term Start:	March 4, 1873
Term End:	March 3, 1875
Preceded:	Dwight Townsend
Succeeded:	Henry B. Metcalfe
Birth Date:	18 September 1825
Birth Place:	Northport, New York, U.S.
Death Place:	New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma Mater:	Trinity College
Known For:	Founder of Scudder & Carter
Parents:	Henry Scudder Elizabeth Hewlett
Spouse:
Relations:	Townsend Scudder (nephew)

Henry Joel Scudder (September 18, 1825  - February 10, 1886) was a United States Representative from New York.^[1]

Early life

Born in Northport. He was the son of Henry Scudder (1778–1863) and Elizabeth (née Hewlett) Scudder (1792–1870). His paternal grandparents were Henry Scudder (1743–1822), of Crab Meadow in Long Island, and Phebe Carll Scudder (1743–1821).^[2] His nephew, Townsend Scudder (July–1960),^[3] was a judge and also a U.S. Representative from New York.^[1] His maternal grandfather was Divine Hewlett.^[2]

Scudder was descended from Thomas Scudder, who immigrated to Salem, Massachusetts, from Kent in 1630, and was related to fellow U.S. Congressmen Tredwell Scudder.^[4]

He attended the district school and Huntington Academy. He graduated from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1846.^[1]

Career

Following his graduation from Trinity, he studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1848 and practiced in New York City. In 1854, he founded the law firm of Scudder & Carter, which is now known as Carter Ledyard & Milburn. He was commissioned captain in the Thirty-seventh Regiment of the New York National Guard in 1862 and served throughout the Civil War.^[1]

Scudder was elected as a Republican to the Forty-third Congress, holding office from March 4, 1873, to March 3, 1875. While in Congress, he was assigned to the Committee on War Claims. He declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1874 and was a trustee of Trinity College for over twenty years. He resumed the practice of law in New York City,^[1] where he was principal counsel for the Standard Oil Company.

In 1876, he was a candidate for Judge of the Superior Court of New York.^[5] In 1884, the Republicans of Suffolk County again tried to persuade Scudder to accept the nomination for Judge.^[6]

Personal life

On June 21, 1853, Scudder was married to Louisa Henrietta Davies (1834–1864),^[7] the daughter of Prof. Charles Davies of the United States Military Academy.^[2] Together, they were the parents of:^[1]

• Henry Townsend Scudder (1854–1937),^[8] a Reverend who was married to Margaret Mott Weeks (1863–1933),^[9] the daughter of Jacob Mott Weeks.^[10]
• Charles Davies Scudder (1856–1892),^[11] a physician in New York City who married Louisa Wardner Evarts (1861–1937),^[12] the daughter of former Senator William M. Evarts, in 1883.^{[13] [14]}
• Edward Mansfield Scudder (1858–1944),^[15] a Trinity graduate who was also a lawyer and died unmarried.^{[16] [17]}
• Mary English Scudder (1859–1882), who died unmarried at age 22.^[18]
• Elizabeth Scudder (1861–1865), who died young.

After his first wife's death, he remarried to Emma Willard (1835–1893) in 1866.^[1] Emma was the daughter of John Hart Willard (1810–1883) and a granddaughter of Emma Willard, who founded the Emma Willard School in Troy, New York.^{[2] [19]} Together, they were the parents of six children, including:^[20]

• Willard Scudder (1868–1936),^[21] a teacher at St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire.^[22]
• Louisa H. Scudder (c. 1868), who died young.
• Heyward Scudder (1870–1917), a MIT graduate in Medicine^[22] who died unmarried.^[23]
• Emma Willard Scudder (1871–1944), who attended the N.Y. School of Applied Design for Women and married Dr. Edward Loughborough Keyes (1873–1948), the son of Dr. Edward Lawrence Keyes and grandson of Gen. Erasmus D. Keyes,^[24] in 1898.^[25]
• Hewlett Scudder (1875–1942),^[26] a Yale graduate who studied technical engineering at Columbia University.^{[22] [20]}

Scudder died at his residence on East 22nd Street on February 10, 1886, in New York City.^[27] He was buried in the family cemetery at Northport.^[1] His funeral, held at Calvary Church in New York, was attended by Joseph Hodges Choate, Sen. William M. Evarts, Mayor Grace, ex-Chief Justice Charles P. Daly, William Allen Butler, James C. Carter, Aaron J. Vanderpoel, Elihu Root, Elbridge Thomas Gerry, Col. George Bliss, Benjamin H. Bristow, and Clarence A. Seward.^[28]

Notes and References

1. Web site: SCUDDER, Henry Joel - Biographical Information. bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. 9 November 2017.
2. Book: Burke. Arthur Meredyth. The Prominent Families of the United States of America. 1908. Genealogical Publishing Com. 9780806313085. 160. 9 November 2017. en.
3. News: Totunsend Scudder Dies at 95; Ex-State Supreme Court Justice; Sentenced Snyder and Gray to Death in 1927--Served Two Terms in the House. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 23 February 1960.
4. Book: Ross. Peter. Beck. Juergen. A History of Long Island, Vol. 3. 2009. North Charleston, SC. 9783849678920. 9 November 2017. en.
5. News: HON. HENRY J. SCUDDER.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 1 November 1876.
6. News: DELEGATES FOR HENRY J. SCUDDER.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 1 October 1884.
7. Book: The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. 1912. The Society. 230. 9 November 2017. en.
8. News: REV. HENRY SCUDDER, RECTOR EMERITUS, 82; Retired Leader of Episcopal Church in Tarrytown Had Been in Ministry 60 Years. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 14 July 1937.
9. News: DIED. SCUDDER--Margaret M.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 29 September 1933.
10. Book: Mathews. John. Mathews' American Armoury and Blue Book. 2012. 9780956815774. 21. Lulu.com . 9 November 2017. en.
11. News: SUICIDE OF DR. C.D. SCUDDER.; PUT A DAGGER THROUGH HIS HEART AT NORTHPORT, L.I.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 20 July 1892.
12. News: MRS. CHARLES D. SCUDDER. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 5 March 1937.
13. News: Dr. Scudder's Funeral.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 22 July 1892.
14. Book: Sherman. Thomas Townsend. Sherman Genealogy Including Families of Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk, England: Some Descendants of the Immigrants, Captain John Sherman, Reverend John Sherman, Edmund Sherman and Samuel Sherman, and the Descendents of Honorable Roger Sherman and Honorable Charles R. Sherman. 1920. T. A. Wright. 381. 9 November 2017. en.
15. News: DIED. SCUDDER, Edward Mansfield. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 6 September 1944.
16. Book: Trinity College (Hartford Conn.). Catalogue of the Officers and Students. 1888. 53. 9 November 2017. en.
17. Book: Trinity College Bulletin, 1944-1945 (Necrology). July 1, 1945. Trinity College Bulletin and Catalogues. 354. 9 November 2017.
18. Web site: Mary English Scudder b. 21 Sep 1859 New York d. 22 Jan 1882: Scudder Association. tng.scudder.org. The Scudder Association. 9 November 2017.
19. Web site: Emma Hart Willard Family Papers, 1819-1961 (Bulk: 1820-1880). asteria.fivecolleges.edu. Amherst College Archives and Special Collections. 9 November 2017.
20. Book: Yale University Class of 1896. Decennial Record. 1907. Yale University. 561–563. 9 November 2017. en.
21. News: WILLARD SCUDDER, 69, INSTRUCTOR, IS DEAD; Master at St. Paul's School for 43 Years Stricken as He Chats With Friends.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 2 June 1936.
22. Book: Fairbanks. Mary J. Mason. Emma Willard and Her Pupils: Or, Fifty Years of Troy Female Seminary, 1822-1872. 1898. Mrs. R. Sage. 629–630. 9 November 2017. en.
23. News: 250 ROUTED BY FIRE FROM BOSTON HOTEL; Actresses and Others, Many in Night Clothes, Flee from the Lenox. SHOCK FATAL TO ONE GUEST Heyward Scudder, of Northport, L. I., Found Dead;-Ex-Governor Walsh Escapes. Ex-Governor Walsh Escapes. Sheltered in B.A.A. Building.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 11 February 1917.
24. Book: Leonard. John William. Woman's Who's Who of America: A Biographical Dictionary of Contemporary Women of the United States and Canada, 1914-1915. 1914. American Commonwealth Company. 454. 9 November 2017. en.
25. News: WEDDINGS OF A DAY Keyes -- Scudder.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 18 November 1898.
26. News: HEWLETT SCUDDER, G.E. EX-AIDE, DIES; Attorney in Charge of Foreign Patents, 1911-42, Once an Assistant to Steinmetz JOINED COMPANY IN 1903 Held Post With International Subsidiary -- Father Was Representative, Lawyer. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 1 August 1942.
27. News: Henry J. Scudder. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 11 February 1886.
28. News: FUNERAL OF HENRY J. SCUDDER.. 9 November 2017. The New York Times. 13 February 1886.