born Nov. 15, 1797, Cairo, N.Y., U.S.
died Nov. 22, 1882, New York, N.Y.
U.S. journalist and politician.
He worked on various newspapers in upstate New York and was a leader in the Anti-Masonic movement . He was the founding editor of the Albany Evening Journal (1830–63). He helped form the Whig Party in New York and was instrumental in William Seward 's election as governor (1838) and in the presidential election of William H. Harrison (1840). He later became active in the Republican Party and was a staunch supporter of Pres. Abraham Lincoln . In 1861 he was sent to England to seek support for the Union.