History of Kennebunkport, (York County) Maine United States of America

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George Clement Perkins, senator, was born in Kennebunkport, Maine, Aug. 23, 1832; son of Clement and Lucinda (Fairfield) Perkins. Both his father and mother were of New England Puritan ancestry. He was brought up on a farm, received a limited education, and in 1852 went to sea as a cabin boy on the ship Golden Eagle. He made six voyages to Europe on sailing ships. In 1885 he shipped before the mast on the ship Galatea, bound for San Francisco, Cal. He engaged in mining and teaming in California but without success, and opened a mercantile business in Oroville, Cal. Later he engaged in the banking, mining and milling industries. He became a member of a shipping firm in San Francisco, Goodall, Perkins & Company, which later became the builders and owners of the Pacific Coast Steamship company. He was the pioneer in the introduction of steam whalers for the Arctic ocean, and operated steamships on the coast of California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, Mexico and Alaska. He was a representative in the state senate, 1869-76; governor of the state of California, 1879-83, and was appointed July 24, 1893, U.S. senator, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Leland Stanford, and was elected Aug. 8, 1893, for the remainder of the unexpired term. He was re-elected in 1895 and 1903, his term expiring March 3, 1909. He was chairman of the committee on fisheries, and a member of the appropriations, education and labor, naval affairs, commerce, Pacific Islands and Porto Rico and coast and insular survey committees. He was president of the Merchants' Exchange, and of the Art association, arid a director of the California Academy of Science.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

History of Kennebunkport, (York County) Maine

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