Isaac R. Harrington
Buffalo, New York City Hall Portrait Collection
11th Mayor of Buffalo, New York
In office March 2, 1841 – March 8, 1842
Preceded by	Sheldon Thompson
Succeeded by	George W. Clinton
9th Postmaster of Buffalo, New York
In office May 17, 1849 – August 20, 1851
Preceded by	Henry K. Smith
Succeeded by	James O. Putnam
Alderman from Buffalo, New York's Fifth Ward[1]
In office March 5, 1840 – March 1, 1841 Serving with Peter Curtiss
Preceded by	Peter Curtiss, Augustine Kimball
Succeeded by	John R. Lee, Henry Roop
Personal details
Born	(1789-12-07)December 7, 1789 New Haven, Connecticut
Died	August 20, 1851(1851-08-20) (aged 61) Buffalo, New York
Political party	Whig
Spouse	Amanda Lyman (m. 1810-1851, his death)
Children	6
Education	University of Vermont
Occupation	Businessman Hotelier

Isaac R. Harrington (December 7, 1789 - August 20, 1851) was a prominent businessman and entrepreneur in Burlington, Vermont and Buffalo, New York. He became active in politics as a Whig and served as mayor of Buffalo from 1841 to 1842.

Early life

Isaac Russell (or Russel) Harrington was born in New Haven, Connecticut on December 7, 1789.^{[2][lower-alpha 1]} Harrington's mother was Hannah (Upson) Harrington (1763-1840).^[3][4] His father was Benjamin Harrington (1762-1810), a prominent citizen of Shelburne, Vermont, who served several terms in the Vermont House of Representatives.^[5] Benjamin Harrington was a native of Connecticut and commanded ships on ocean voyages before moving to Shelburne, which resulted in Shelburne residents frequently referring to him as "Captain Harrington".^[5]

In 1793, Benjamin Harrington moved his family to Shelburne, where Isaac Harrington was raised and educated.^[5] He graduated from the University of Vermont in 1809.^[6] During the War of 1812, Harrington served as a private in the 1st Regiment (Judson's) of the Vermont Militia.^[7]

Harrington became active in several business ventures in Burlington, including a store where he sold dry goods, groceries, hardware and housewares.^[8][9] He also bought and sold other items when he had the opportunity, including horses, farms, and barrels of beer.^[10][11][12] In 1816, Harrington became the proprietor of a Burlington inn and hotel, which he purchased from Joseph King.^[13]

Another early Isaac Harrington business venture was operating the Phoenix, a Lake Champlain steamship which made regular trips to and from Whitehall, New York and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec.^[14] Harrington was the ship's sailing master, and as a result was frequently addressed as "Captain Harrington", as his father had been.^[14][15] He left Vermont in about 1830 and moved to Buffalo, New York; an 1832 letter by a Vermonter traveling to Cleveland, Ohio was published in a Burlington newspaper, which indicated that the author had stayed at the Eagle Tavern in Buffalo, of which Harrington was the proprietor.^[16]

Career in Buffalo

In addition to Harrington's business career in Buffalo, he became active in the city's local government.^[17] In the mid-1830s, he was appointed to several commissions that assessed property owners in order to finance improvements to several Buffalo streets.^[17][18] The owners were required to pay based on the value the improvements would add to their homes and businesses.^[17][18] In Buffalo, Harrington was popularly known as "Cuff" or "Old Cuff", but the origin of the nickname is not known.^[19][20]

Harrington was also involved in Buffalo-area politics as a member of the Whig Party.^[21] In 1836 he was a delegate to the party's 8th New York State Senate District Convention.^[21] In 1840, Harrington was a candidate for alderman from Buffalo's fifth ward.^[22] He was elected, and took his seat in March.^[23] Though he was a Whig, in 1841 Harrington entered the race for mayor against the party's preferred candidate, Ira A. Blossom.^[24] Harrington was supported by most of Buffalo's Democrats and defeated Blossom.^[24][25] In March, 1841 he succeeded Sheldon Thompson as mayor.^[24][25][26] He served until March 1842, when he was defeated for reelection by George W. Clinton.^[25][27] Among the initiatives Harrington undertook as mayor was an effort to persuade New York's state government to fund improvements to the Erie Canal, which were intended to ensure that Buffalo-area shipping could continue during periods when the water level of Lake Erie receded.^[28]

After leaving the mayor's office, Harrington continued his involvement in Whig politics.^[29] He supported Henry Clay for president in 1844, and attended Whig party meetings to organize the Clay campaign in New York.^[29] Harrington supported the presidential campaign of Zachary Taylor in the election of 1848.^[30] Taylor won and Harrington was one of the honorary managers of a February 1849 Whig inaugural ball held in Buffalo.^[30]

Harrington's support for the Whig Party was recognized in May 1849, when he was appointed as postmaster of Buffalo, succeeding Henry K. Smith.^[31][32] He continued to serve in this position until his death, and was succeeded by James O. Putnam.^[32][33] Harrington became ill in the summer of 1851 and died at his home in Buffalo on August 20.^[33] He was buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo.^[34]

Electoral history

• Election for mayor of Buffalo, 1842^[35]

• George W. Clinton, 1462 (61%)
• Isaac R. Harrington, 909 (39%)

• Election for mayor of Buffalo, 1841^[19]

• Isaac R. Harrington, 1122 (52%)
• Ira A. Blossom, 996 (48%)

• Election for Alderman from Buffalo's Fifth Ward, 1840^[36]

• Isaac R. Harrington, 221 (31.5%)
• Peter Curtiss, 205 (29.2%)
• A. Q. Stebbins, 170 (24.2%)
• Henry Roop, 105 (15.0%)

Family

In 1810, Harrington married Amanda Lyman (1790-1874) in Burlington.^[37] They were the parents of six children -- Edmund, Laura, Juliet, Charles, Donald, and Marion.^[38][39][40]

Notes

References

Sources

External links

• Isaac R. Harrington at Find a Grave