Ambrose S. Murray

Ambrose Spencer Murray (November 27, 1807 – November 9, 1885) was an American businessman and politician from New York. He is best known for his service as a U.S. Representative from New York.

Murray was a native of Wallkill, New York, and attended the local schools. He worked for several years as a clerk in his uncle's Middletown, New York, store, then moved to Goshen, New York, to begin a career in banking and business. He became the president of the Orange County Bank in 1845, and served until his death. Murray was also active in other businesses, including serving on the board of directors for several railroads and financial institutions.

As an opponent of slavery, Murray became active in politics as a Whig, and migrated to the Republican Party as the abolition movement coalesced. He served as Orange County Treasurer from 1848 to 1851.

In 1854, Murray ran successfully for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Whig. He was reelected in 1856, and served from 1855 to 1859. His tenure was noted for his continued opposition to slavery. In 1856, he was one of the two Congressmen who came to the aid of Senator Charles Sumner when Representative Preston Brooks committed his attack on Sumner on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

After leaving Congress, Murray resumed his banking and business activities. As a director of the Erie Railroad, he used his connections to obtain free tickets and passes for runaway slaves, facilitating their escape to Canada. During the American Civil War, Murray was a member of the committee that raised and equipped the 124th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Murray died in Goshen on November 9, 1885, and was buried at Saint James' Cemetery in Goshen.

Early life Murray was born in Wallkill, New York, on November 27, 1807, the seventh of nine children born to William Murray and Mary Ann (Beakes) Murray. His siblings included William Murray, who also served as a member of Congress from New York. He served as treasurer of Orange County from 1848 to 1851. In 1856, he won reelection to the Thirty-fifth Congress as the nominee of the new Republican Party, which had become the main anti-slavery party.

In October 1855, Murray was a vice president of the final New York State Whig Convention, which took the initial steps to align the declining Whig Party with the recently formed Republican Party. His tenure was noted for his opposition to slavery; when Congress considered approval of the pro-slavery Lecompton Constitution for Kansas in 1858, Murray was in mourning for the death of one of his sons and attending to his ill wife, but left Goshen to return to Washington in time vote no. In 1856, Murray was one of two Representatives who interceded in the Caning of Charles Sumner, stopping Representative Preston Brooks' attack on Senator Charles Sumner and obtaining medical aid for Sumner.

Electoral history

Charles S. Woodworth

Jonathan Stratton

Later life After leaving Congress, Murray resumed banking in Goshen, New York. He served as a delegate to the 1860 Republican National Convention. In the years before slavery was ended, Murray used his connection to the Erie Railroad to provide fugitive slaves free passes and tickets to aid them in escaping to Canada. During the American Civil War, Governor Edwin D. Morgan appointed committees of leading citizens in each of New York's counties to facilitate the recruiting and equipping of troops for the Union Army. Murray was Goshen's member of the Orange County Committee, and played a key role in raising the 124th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment, which consisted primarily of soldiers from Orange County, and was nicknamed the Orange Blossoms.

Family In 1836, Murray married Frances Wisner (1814-1906), a daughter of Henry G. Wisner and Sarah (Talman) Wisner. They were the parents of six children—Ellen, George W., Wisner, Ambrose S. Jr., Russell, and Francis W.