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Frederick Low

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Frederick Ferdinand Low
Portrait by Brady c. 1861–1863
United States Minister to China
In office
September 28, 1869 – July 24, 1873
PresidentUlysses S. Grant
Preceded byJohn Ross Browne
Succeeded byBenjamin Parke Avery
9th Governor of California
In office
December 10, 1863 – December 5, 1867
LieutenantTim N. Machin
Preceded byLeland Stanford
Succeeded byHenry Huntly Haight
Collector of the Port of San Francisco
In office
March 26, 1863 – August 11, 1863
Appointed byAbraham Lincoln
Preceded byIra P. Rankin
Succeeded byCharles James
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from California's at-large district
In office
June 3, 1862 – March 3, 1863
Preceded bySeat created
Succeeded byThomas Bowles Shannon
Personal details
Born(1828-06-30)June 30, 1828
Frankfort, Maine, U.S.
DiedJuly 21, 1894(1894-07-21) (aged 66)
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Resting placeCypress Lawn Memorial Park
PartyWhig (before 1856)
Republican (after 1856)
Other political
affiliations
National Union
SpouseMollie Creed
ChildrenFlora
ProfessionBanker, politician

Frederick Ferdinand Low (June 30, 1828 – July 21, 1894) was an American politician and diplomat who served as the 9th governor of California from 1863 to 1867. He was previously a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1862 to 1863, and was later appointed United States Minister to China, serving from 1869 to 1873.

Early life and education

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Low was born in Frankfort, Maine on June 30, 1828. He received a common school education and attended the Hampden Academy before moving to Boston in 1846 to clerk for a mercantile company. He came to California on the SS Panama in 1849, during the gold rush, working in the mines for three months and earning over $1,500 in gold. He then settled in San Francisco and became a merchant himself before the great fire of 1850 burned down his general store. He then relocated to Marysville and became a banker, as well as a co-founder of the California Steam Navigation Company.[1][2][3][4]

Career

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Low later in life

Low presented credentials as a Republican representative-elect to the 37th Congress but was not permitted to take his seat until a special act of Congress was passed. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from June 3, 1862 to March 3, 1863.

Low was appointed collector of the Port of San Francisco by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863,[5] and later that year was elected the 9th Governor of California, serving from December 10, 1863 to December 5, 1867. He was the second California governor to live in the Stanford Mansion as the official residence and office until the opening of the California State Capitol in 1869.[6] Low was California's last Civil War governor. Hallmarks of his administration were the establishment of Yosemite National Park and University of California. Low was considered the father of the University of California, though his successor, Henry H. Haight, signed the Charter of the University.[4]

Low served as United States Minister to China from 1869 to 1874.[7] During his tenure, the Tianjin Massacre occurred, which Low reported back on to the United States.[8]

Personal life

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Low mausoleum at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park

He died in San Francisco on July 21, 1894. He is buried in the Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma.

References

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  1. ↑ Glyndon, Howard (1862). Notable Men in "The House." A Series of Sketches of Prominent Men in the House of Representatives, Members of the Thirty-Seventh Congress. New York: Baker & Godwin. pp. 90–92. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  2. ↑ Wells, William V. (1870). Representative and Leading Men of the Pacific: Being Original Sketches of the Lives and Characters of the Principal Men, to Which Are Added Their Speeches, Addresses, Orations, Eulogies, Lectures and Poems, Including the Happiest Forensic Efforts of Baker, Randolph, McDougall, T. Starr King, and Other Popular Orators. San Francisco: Bacon and Company. pp. 625–629. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  3. ↑ Sheppard, Eli T. (April 1917). "Frederick Ferdinand Low, Ninth Governor of California". University of California Chronicle. XIX (2): 133–153. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  4. 1 2 "Frederick Low, 1863–1867". governors.library.ca.gov. California State Library. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
  5. ↑ A Biographical Directory of the United States Customs Service, 1771-1989. U. S. Customs Service. 1985.
  6. ↑ Department of Parks & Recreation. "Stanford Mansion History". State of California. Retrieved May 2, 2007.
  7. ↑ Anderson, David L. (1980). "Between Two Cultures: Frederick F. Low in China". California History. 59 (3): 240–254. doi:10.2307/25157990. ISSN 0162-2897.
  8. ↑ Clyde, Paul Hibbert (1933). "Frederick F. Low and the Tientsin Massacre". Pacific Historical Review. 2 (1): 100–108. doi:10.2307/3633429. ISSN 0030-8684.
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