Harvey Lee

Candidate Biography:

Born: 1819 in New York
Married: Mary Ferguson (m. 1853), Anna Foster (m. 1861)
Children.
Military Service: California Volunteers (Civil War)
Died: August 19, 1866 in Sacramento, CA

1858-1859: California Reporter of Decisions
1866: Justice, Sixteenth Judicial District

• Legislative Altercation: On March 25, 1859, Lee was involved in an altercation with former Speaker Charles S. Fairfax. The fight ended when Lee pulled a sword from his cane and stabbed Fairfax in the chest. Fairfax drew a pistol and was ready to kill Lee when he cried "Don't kill me; I am unarmed!" to which Fairfax replied "You miserable coward; you have murdered me-you have assassinated me-and I have your worthless life in my hands; but for the sake of your wife and children I shall spare you."
•  Died in a buggy accident.

Source: History of Political Conventions in California, 1849-1892 by Winfield J. Davis (1893)