SPAULDING, Elbridge Gerry, banker, born in Summer Hill, Cayuga County, New York, 24 February, 1809. He is a lineal descendant in the seventh generation of Edward Spaulding, who came from England and settled in Massachusetts soon after the arrival of the Puritans in the "Mayflower." His father, Edward, was a pioneer from New England to central New York. The son studied law in Batavia and Attica, New York, was admitted to practice in Genesee county, and soon afterward removed to Buffalo, New York He was associated in practice with Heman B. Potter, George R. Babcock, and John Ganson. After accumulating a fortune in the practice of the law he gave his attention to banking, in which he has been equally successful. He was instrumental in causing the removal of the Farmers' and mechanics' bank of Batavia to Buffalo, and soon thereafter became its president. Upon the passage of the Federal banking-law the bank was reorganized under its provisions with the name of the Farmers' and mechanics' national bank, and Mr. Spaulding as president and principal owner. He has been largely identified with public affairs. He was mayor in 1847 and assemblyman in 1848, was a representative in congress in 1849-'51, having been chosen as a Whig, was state treasurer in 1853, and again elected to congress as a Republican in 1858, serving till 1863. During his last term in congress Mr. Spaulding achieved a wide reputation. He was a member of the ways and means committee, and chairman of the sub-committee that was intrusted with the duty of preparing legislative measures. The result was the presentation and passage of the Greenback or Legal-Tender act, and the National currency bank bill. Both of these were drawn by Mr. Spaulding. They were offered and urged as war measures, and are claimed to be the best financial system that was ever conceived or adopted by any government. Mr. Spaulding is entitled to the credit of formulating these measures and securing their adoption. By reason of his connection with this important legislation he has been called the " Father of Greenbacks." Mr. Spaulding prepared a "History of the Legal-Tender Paper Money used during the Great Rebellion" (Buffalo, 1869), which is regarded as standard authority on the subject. He was chosen to deliver the address before the Banking association at the Centennial exposition, in which he gave a review of "One Hundred Years of Progress in the Business of Banking."