American statesman, born in Sheffield, England, on the 29th of January 1845. His parents were Americans temporarily sojourning in England, and returned to this country in 1846. They settled in Georgia, where the boy received the ordinary common-school education. In 1861 he entered the Confederate service; rose to the rank of lieutenant, and in May, 1864, was captured by the Federal forces. At the close of the war he began the study of law, and was admitted to the bar. In 1872 he was given the position of attorney-general of the southwestern judicial district of Georgia, and served until 1877, when he was appointed judge of the superior court. Later he was elected by the general assembly to the same office, and re-elected in 1880 for a term of four years. In 1882 he became a candidate for Congress and was elected. On December 8, 1892, Mr. Crisp was elected Speaker of the Fifty-second Congress, and of the Fifty-third Congress in 1893. He died in Atlanta, GA, on the 23rd of October 1896. See also “In Closing the Wilson Tariff Bill Debate.”
