Charles H. Adams (New York politician)
Charles Henry Adams (April 10, 1824 – December 15, 1902) was an American lawyer, businessman, and politician from New York. Born in Coxsackie, he studied law and began practicing in New York City. He moved to Cohoes in 1850, where he ran a knit underwear business and worked in banking. In 1851 he was named colonel on Governor Washington Hunt's staff. He married Elizabeth Platt Adams and they had three children: Sarah, Mary, and William.
Adams served as the first Mayor of Cohoes (1870–1872). He was a member of the New York State Assembly in 1858 as a Know Nothing, representing Albany County's 4th district. He later served in the New York State Senate (1872–1873) for the 13th district. He was a United States commissioner to the Vienna Exposition in 1873 and a delegate to the 1872 Republican National Convention.
He was elected as a Republican to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing New York's 16th district, and served one term from March 4, 1875, to March 3, 1877. After leaving Congress, he went back to banking in Cohoes until 1892, when he moved to New York City. He died in Manhattan on December 15, 1902, at age 78 and was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 14:50 (CET).