Cushman K. Davis
A sharp-witted Minnesota senator who shaped America's imperial ambitions at the turn of the 20th century.
1838–1900 (age 62)·American politician·Birthday: June 16
Biography
Cushman K. Davis was a man of the Gilded Age, a politician whose intellect and oratory carried him from the Minnesota governor's mansion to the powerful corridors of the U.S. Senate. Born in New York and raised in Wisconsin, he served as a Union officer in the Civil War before settling in Minnesota to practice law. His political rise was marked by a keen legal mind and a staunch Republican worldview. As a senator, Davis chaired the Foreign Relations Committee during a pivotal period, becoming a leading architect of the nation's expansionist foreign policy. He was a principal author of the resolution that led to the Spanish-American War and helped draft the treaty that ended it, securing territories like Puerto Rico and Guam for the United States. His vision was of an America taking its place as a global power, a legacy cemented in the peace negotiations of 1898.
#1 When Cushman Was Born
The biggest hits of 1838
Cushman's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1838Born
1843Started school
1851Became a teenager
1854Could drive
1856Could vote
1859Turned 21
1868Turned 30
President: Andrew Johnson
1878Turned 40
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1888Turned 50
President: Grover Cleveland
1898Turned 60
Spanish-American War; US emerges as a world power
President: William McKinley
1900Died at 62
Boxer Rebellion in China
President: William McKinley
Key Achievements
- Served as the seventh Governor of Minnesota from 1874 to 1876.
- Represented Minnesota in the U.S. Senate for three terms, from 1887 until his death in 1900.
- As Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he co-authored the resolution for war with Spain in 1898.
- Was a key negotiator and signatory of the Treaty of Paris (1898), which ended the Spanish-American War.
Did You Know?
He was wounded and captured during the Civil War Battle of Corinth but was later exchanged.
Davis was known as one of the best-read and most scholarly members of the Senate in his era.
He died suddenly of pneumonia just months after his treaty negotiations were concluded.
“The nation's policy must be shaped by its interests, not by the sentimentalities of the hour.”
