Henry Keyes
Henry Keyes | |
---|---|
Member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Newbury | |
In office 1855–1856 | |
Preceded by | James M. Chadwick |
Succeeded by | A. B. W. Tenney |
Member of the Vermont Senate from Orange County | |
In office 1847–1849 Serving with William Sweatt, Jefferson P. Kidder | |
Preceded by | Levi B. Vilas, Reuben Page, Horace Fifield |
Succeeded by | J. W. D. Parker, S. Milton Bigelow, Stephen Thomas |
Personal details | |
Born | Vershire, Vermont | January 3, 1810
Died | September 24, 1870 Newbury, Vermont | (aged 60)
Resting place | Oxbow Cemetery, Newbury, Vermont |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Sarah A. Pierce (m. 1838-1853, her death) Emma F. Pierce (m. 1856-1870, his death) |
Children | 5 (including Henry W. Keyes) |
Occupation | Businessman |
Henry Keyes (January 3, 1810 – September 24, 1870) was a politician and railroad executive from Vermont. He was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives and Vermont Senate. He was also the Democratic nominee for governor three times (1856, 1857, 1858). In addition, Keyes served as president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.
Early life
Keyes was born in Vershire, Vermont on January 3, 1810, the son of Thomas and Margaretta (McArthur) Keyes.[1][2] He was raised and educated in Vershire, and moved to Newbury at age 15 to work at the Reed & Gould store.[2] In 1831, he left Reed & Gould to go into business with his brother Freeman.[1] The brothers operated the F. and H. Keyes Store, which became the largest general store in the Connecticut River Valley.[1]
Business and farming career
In addition to the store, Keyes was active in several other business ventures.
Keyes's other business interests included ownership stakes in Boston's United States Hotel as well as mines, steamboats and stagecoaches.[2][3][4] Keyes was also a large shareholder in the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.[1] He was appointed the company's president in February 1869.[1]
He also owned and operated a farm that included land on both sides of the Connecticut River in Newbury and in Haverhill, New Hampshire, where he raised Durham cattle and Merino sheep.[5] Keyes also served as president of the Vermont State Agricultural Society.[3] From 1853 to 1855, Keyes served as a trustee of Norwich University.[2]
Political career
A Democrat, Keys represented Orange County in the Vermont Senate from 1847 to 1849.[6] From 1855 to 1856, Keyes was Newbury's member of the Vermont House of Representatives.[7]
In 1856, Keyes was the Democratic nominee for governor and lost to Republican nominee Ryland Fletcher.[2] He ran again in 1857 and lost again to Fletcher, and was the unsuccessful Democratic nominee in 1858, losing to Hiland Hall.[2]
Keyes was the chairman of the Vermont delegation to the
Death
In mid-September 1870, Keyes became ill.[1] He died in Newbury on September 24.[1] Keyes was buried at Oxbow Cemetery in Newbury.[1]
Family
In May 1838, Keyes married Sarah A. Pierce of Stanstead, Quebec.[2] They had no children and she died in 1853.[2] In May 1856, Keyes married Emma F. Pierce, a sister of his first wife.[2] They were the parents of five children—Henry, Martha, Ezra, George, and Charles.[2]
Keyes's son, Henry W. Keyes (1863–1938), became Governor of New Hampshire in 1917.[1] In 1918, he was elected to the U.S. senator in 1919.[1]
References
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Ellis, William A. (1911). Norwich University, 1819-1911; Her History, Her Graduates, Her Roll of Honor. Vol. 2. Montpelier, VT: Capital City Press. p. 8 – via Google Books.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-6745-2665-5 – via Google Books.
- ^ Tenney, William J., ed. (April 1854). "Journal of Mining Laws and Organizations: American Mining Company". The Mining Magazine. New York, NY: Billis & Brothers. pp. 403–404 – via Google Books.
- ^ Pearson, H. C. (August 1916). "Hon. Henry W. Keyes". The Granite State Monthly. Concord, NH: The Granite Monthly Company. p. 226 – via Google Books.
- ^ Deming, Leonard (1851). Catalogue of the Principal Officers of Vermont. Middlebury, VT: Leonard Deming. p. 16 – via Google Books.
- ^ Hemenway, Abby Maria (1871). The Vermont Historical Gazetteer. Vol. II, Part 3. Burlington, VT: A. M. Hemenway. p. 944 – via Google Books.
External links
- Waters, Lawrence L. (1950). Steel Trails to Santa Fe. University of Kansas Press, Lawrence, Kansas. p. 42.