Aaron A. Sargent

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Aaron Augustus Sargent (September 28, 1827 – August 14, 1887) was an American journalist, lawyer, politician and diplomat. In 1878, Sargent historically introduced what would later become the

Early life and education

Born in Newburyport, Massachusetts, he attended the common schools and then was apprenticed to a cabinetmaker.^[1] In his youth, he worked as a printer in Philadelphia and then, in 1847, moved to Washington, D.C., where he was a secretary to a Congressman.

Career

He moved to California in 1849 and settled in

Congress

Sargent was elected as a

In January 1878, Senator Sargent introduced the 29 words that would later become the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, allowing women the right to vote. Sargent's wife, Ellen Clark Sargent, was a leading voting rights advocate and a friend of such suffrage leaders as Susan B. Anthony. The bill calling for the amendment would be introduced unsuccessfully each year for the next forty years.

Ambassador to Germany

Sargent returned to California in 1880. After leaving the Senate he practiced law in San Francisco for three years, leaving to become

Sargent was a noted proponent of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, arguing in Overland Monthly in support of exclusion and for the renewal of the 1882 Exclusion Act after its expiration in 1892. The Chinese Exclusion Act was eventually renewed in 1892, and again—indefinitely—in 1902, staying in effect until 1943.

References

Further reading

This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (September 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

• Sargent, A A (November 1885). "The Wyoming anti-Chinese riot". Overland Monthly and Out West Magazine. Vol. 6, no. 35. San Francisco. pp. 507–512.
  ProQuest 137560189
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• Sargent, A A (January 1886). "'The Wyoming Anti-Chinese Riot.'—Again". Overland Monthly and Out West Magazine. Vol. 7, no. 37. San Francisco. pp. 54–60.
  ProQuest 137565135
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• Shepard, Christopher (Winter 2013). "No Chinese Wanted: Aaron Sargent and Chinese Immigration, 1862-1886". Journal of the West. 51 (1): 50–57.
  EBSCOhost 87334901
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• United States Congress. "Aaron A. Sargent (id: S000065)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.