Sereno E. Payne

Sereno Elisha Payne (June 26, 1843 – December 10, 1914) was a United States representative from New York and the first House Majority Leader, holding the office from 1899 to 1911. He was a Republican congressman from 1883 to 1887 and then from 1889 to his death in 1914. He was chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee for 12 years starting in 1899. The Payne–Aldrich Tariff is perhaps the most significant legislation he introduced during that period. He was known as a staunch protectionist.

Sereno E. Payne
House Majority Leader
In office March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1911
Speaker	David B. Henderson (1899–1903) Joseph G. Cannon (1903–1911)
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Oscar Underwood
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York
In office March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1887
Preceded by	John H. Camp
Succeeded by	Newton W. Nutting
Constituency	26th district (1883–85) 27th district (1885–87)
In office December 2, 1889 – December 10, 1914
Preceded by	Newton W. Nutting
Succeeded by	Norman J. Gould
Constituency	27th district (1889–93) 28th district (1893–1903) 31st district (1903–13) 36th district (1913–14)
Personal details
Born	Sereno Elisha Payne June 26, 1843 Hamilton, New York, U.S.
Died	December 10, 1914(1914-12-10) (aged 71) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting place	Fort Hill Cemetery
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Gertrude Knapp ​ (m. 1873⁠–⁠1911)​
Children	1
Alma mater	University of Rochester
Profession	Law
Signature

Early life

Sereno Elisha Payne was born on June 26, 1843, in Hamilton, New York, to William Wallace Payne. The family moved to Auburn, New York. He attended the Auburn Academy and then graduated from the University of Rochester in 1864. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1866.

Career

Payne practiced law in Auburn, rising to become the Cayuga County district attorney from 1873 to 1879. Payne served in a number of administrative roles for the city of Auburn, as city clerk in 1867 to 1868, supervisor in 1871 to 1872, and president of the board of education from 1879 to 1882. He was appointed a member of the American-British Joint High Commission in January 1899.

Payne was elected as a Republican to the Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses (March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1887). He was elected into the Fifty-first Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Representative Newton W. Nutting and was reelected to the twelve succeeding Congresses (December 2, 1889 – December 10, 1914). During his tenure, he served as chairman of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries (Fifty-fourth and Fifty-fifth Congresses), chairman of the Ways and Means Committee (Fifty-fifth through Sixty-first Congresses), and majority leader (Fifty-seventh through Sixty-first Congresses). He was reelected to the Sixty-fourth Congress but died before that term began. He was an advocate for protectionism and wrote the Payne–Aldrich Tariff. He was a delegate to the 1892, 1896, 1900 and the 1904 Republican National Conventions.

Personal life

Payne married Gertrude Flourette Knapp, daughter of Arietta Montgomery Terry and Oscar Fitzalen Knapp, of Auburn in 1873. They had one son, William K. His wife died in 1911. He lived in Auburn throughout his life. He had a home at 4 James Street in Auburn.

Payne died of heart disease on December 10, 1914, at the Portland Hotel in Washington, D.C.. He was buried in Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn.

Awards

Colgate University and the University of Rochester awarded Payne with honorary LLD degrees.

See also

• List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49)

Further reading

• Ways and Means reference
• List of majority leaders
• Sereno E. Payne, late a representative from New York, Memorial addresses delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate frontispiece 1916