Eugene Casserly was born on November 13, 1820, in
Mullingar,
County Westmeath, Ireland, and immigrated to the
United States with his parents in 1822, settling in
New York City. Casserly's father prepared him for a college education and he attended and graduated from
Georgetown University in
Washington, D.C. He subsequently studied law and was admitted to the
bar in 1844 and began practicing in
New York City. Casserly became editor of ''
Freeman's Journal'' and contributed to several newspapers in various cities. Before moving to
San Francisco, California, in 1850, Casserly served on the New York City corporation counsel from 1846 to 1847. Upon moving to California, he published the
Public Balance, the
True Balance and the
Standard, and was elected
State printer in 1851 before retiring from
journalism and resuming his law practice. In 1854, he married Teresa, daughter of deceased merchant John Doyle. Together, they had three children, two sons and a daughter. Casserly was elected as a
Democrat to the United States Senate in
1867, where he served from March 1869 until his resignation on November 29, 1873. In the U.S. Senate, he served as chairman of the
Committee on Pacific Railroads during the
42nd Congress and the
Committee on Engrossed Bills during the
42nd Congress and
43rd Congress. After resigning from the United States Senate, Casserly resumed practicing law in San Francisco and served as a member of the
California Constitutional Convention in 1878 and 1879. Casserly died in San Francisco on June 14, 1883, and was interred in
Calvary Cemetery. He was subsequently re-interred in
Holy Cross Cemetery in
Colma, California, in 1904. ==References==