Gilbert was born in Alexander, New York and went to the public schools.
Gilbert served on the Waukesha County, Wisconsin Board of Supervisors.
In 1878 and 1879, Gilbert served in the Wisconsin State Assembly and was a Republican.
He killed himself by hanging in a barn on his farm in New Berlin, Wisconsin.
This article about a Republican Party member of the Wisconsin State Assembly born in the 1820s is a stub.