USA > Connecticut > The governors of Connecticut : biographies of the chief executives of the commonwealth that gave to the world the first written constitution known to history > Part 9
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The Governors of Connecticut
In 1843 Seymour was elected a member of Congress, and when his term had expired he refused a renomination. He was commissioned in March, 1846, major of the Ninth or New Eng- land regiment of volunteers which took part in the Mexican war. Going to the front with his regiment, he served with such distinc- tion that on October 13th, 1847, Major Seymour attained high military honors. The capture of Melino opened the way to Chapultepec, the Gibraltar of Mexico, which was the key to the City of Mexico. As it was built on a rock 150 feet high, impreg- nable on the north and well-nigh so on the eastern and most of the southern face, only the western and a portion of the southern sides could be scaled. The commanders decided, after a council of war, that it must be taken.
Two picked American detachments, one from the west and one from the south, pushed up the rugged steeps in face of an awful fire. The walls at the base of the castle fortress had to be mounted by means of ladders. One of these detachments was commanded by Colonel Ransom, but as that officer fell early in the assault, Major Seymour led the troops, scaled the heights, and with his command was the first to enter the fortress. The enemy was driven back into the city, and Seymour was placed in com- mand of the regiment. He afterwards took part in the capture of the City of Mexico, and was present when it was fully in the hands of General Scott. When the war was over Seymour returned
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The Governors of Connecticut
to Hartford and received the nomination for governor in 1849, but although there were Democratic gains over the preceding year he was not elected. The following year, however, he was elected governor of Connecticut by a large majority. Governor Seymour was re-elected in the years 1851, 1852 and 1853, serving with dis- tinction. He also served as a presidential elector in 1852.
In April, 1853, President Pierce appointed Governor Sey- mour United States minister to Russia, and he immediately resigned his position as governor.
He represented this country at the Russian court for four years, and during his residence there Governor Seymour formed a warm and lasting friendship for both the Czar Nicholas and his son.
From them he received many costly tributes of their regard for him. After retiring from the position in 1857, Governor Sey- mour spent a year in traveling on the continent, returning to the United States in 1858.
Governor Seymour was bred as a Democrat and always upheld the principles of the party with true Jeffersonian tenacity. During the dark days of 1860 and 1861 he clung to the policy of the Democratic party. When the Southern states withdrew from the Union, and the Civil War was precipitated, Governor Sey- mour's sympathies were with the South. He was opposed to the prosecution of the war until its close, and became leader of the Connecticut Peace Democracy.
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The Governors of Connecticut
On account of his pronounced opposition to the Union cause, the Senate of this state, in 1862, voted " that the portrait of Gov- ernor Seymour," with that of Isaac Toucey, should be removed from the chamber till the comptroller should be satisfied of his loyalty to the Federal government. These portraits were taken to a place of safe keeping, and it is said that only one man in the city of Hart- ford knew where they were secreted.
In the Democratic party, however, Governor Seymour retained his old-time popularity and in 1863 he was again nomi- nated for governor. Those were not the days for Democratic successes in Connecticut, and the contest which followed has prob- ably not been equalled in this state.
After a most exciting canvass Seymour was defeated by William A. Buckingham of Norwich. At the Democratic National Convention, which met in Chicago on August 29, 1864, Governor Seymour received thirty-eight votes on the first ballot for president of the United States. He passed the remaining years of his life at Hartford, where he died on September 3, 1868.
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The
THIRTY-SIXTH GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT
was
CHARLES HOBBY POND
The son of a sea captain at Milford, he was grad- uated from Yale College, became a member of the bar, and then followed the sea for several years, shipping as supercargo and finally as cap- tain-Resuming his residence on land, he became identified with the prominent political leaders of the day and was elected lieutenant governor of the state, advancing to the governorship to complete an unexpired term and then retiring to private life
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B ORN in Milford on April 26, 1781, Charles Hobby Pond was the son of Captain and Martha (Miles) Pond. As a boy he was of large physical proportion, possessing a mind of a good order, and gave every promise of a useful career. He decided to attend Yale College and was prepared by his pastor, Reverend Pinneo, and Rev. Azel Backus, afterwards president of Hamilton College. Entering college at the age of seventeen, Pond was distinguished among his fellows for his unusual muscular strength, and an inexhaustible vein of wit. He was a good scholar and while in college became the associate of several young men who later attained fame both of a local and a national character.
Graduating in 1802, Pond decided to become a lawyer, and under the guidance of the Hon. Roger Minot Sherman, of Fair- field, he prosecuted his legal studies for two years. He was after- wards admitted to the bar in Fairfield County, although he never practiced. This was probably due to a sudden failure of health, and a long sea voyage was decided upon as being beneficial.
A lengthy trip suited him so well that he took another, and the result was he followed the sea for several years, shipping first
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The Governors of Connecticut
as a supercargo, then as captain. After having regained his former health he took up his residence on land again, and in 1819 was appointed a judge of the court of New Haven County. In 1820 he was elected sheriff of the same county and held the office for fifteen years. During the years of 1836 and 1837, Pond was an associate judge of the New Haven County Court. Becom- ing prominently identified with the political leaders of the day, he was elected lieutenant governor of Connecticut in 1850. The following year Pond was re-elected to the same office, and as Governor Seymour resigned during the year to become minister to Russia, he succeeded the latter as governor of Connecticut.
He held the office nearly a year and after his retirement never entered public life again. The remainder of his life was spent in retirement, and he died April 28, 1861, the month that witnessed the bombardment of Fort Sumter.
A prominent man who knew Governor Pond intimately said : " He was a man more deeply versed in the political history of the country than any other within the circle of his acquaintance. His talents were of the very first order, and his pen-whenever he wielded it-was marked by the reflection of a powerful mind, and the purest patriotism. No man was wiser in council-none more devoted to the true and lasting interests of his country. His intel- lectual strength, his genial and generous heart, his true and steady friendship, and ready wit, made him the favorite of every circle, whether old or young."
226
The THIRTY-SEVENTH GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT was HENRY DUTTON
Born on a farm in Watertown, he assisted his father in supporting the family and attended the vil- lage school at intervals-At sixteen years of age he began a more liberal education and taught the district school, later graduating from Yale College with the highest honors-Studying law, he received an appointment as Kent professor at Yale, and during the practice of law in Bridgeport many political positions were extended him and for several years he was a member of the judiciary
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HENRY
DUTTON
G OVERNOR Dutton was a jurist who had very few equals in his day, and his fame as an able lawyer does not diminish by time.
Henry Dutton was born in Watertown, Litchfield County, on February 12, 1796, and was a direct descendant from John Pun- derson, one of the "seven pillars" of the First Church at New Haven. His grandfather, Deacon Thomas Dutton, was engaged in the Revolutionary War, and reached the rank of captain.
Born on a hilly country farm, where his father had a hard time obtaining a living, the young man was obliged to labor until sixteen years of age, assisting his father to support the family. He attended a district school at intervals during this period, and early in life displayed a great yearning for reading and study. These favorable propensities were encouraged in a degree by his father, a man of good mind; yet it was not thought possible for the young man to prosecute his studies outside of the town where he was born. Dutton was finally induced to attempt the difficult task of obtaining a liberal education without pecuniary means, by the thoughtful advice of a kinsman. This man was the Rev. Aaron
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The Governors of Connecticut
Dutton, a scholar of great ability, and the pastor for a quarter of a century of the Congregational Church in Guilford. Possessed with superb intellectual endowments, the country pastor's influence at this period probably shaped the future governor's course in life. During the next four years Dutton taught the village school, studied, worked on the neighboring farms, and in this manner prepared himself for admittance to Yale College.
Entering Yale in 1814, he found himself in the midst of a number of intellectual "giants," as Dr. Steiner aptly remarked. Graduating in 1818 with the highest honors the college could bestow, Dutton carried with him a large debt incurred during his course. He immediately commenced the study of law with Hon. Roger M. Sherman in Fairfield. "By him," says his biog- rapher, "Dutton was carried back to the foundations of juris- prudence and taught to regard Coke upon Littleton as a text-book, and to read Ferne on Contingent Remainders by way of amend- ment." While pursuing his studies he also taught the village academy for several years.
From 1821 to 1823 he was a tutor in Yale College, and in the latter year began the practice of his profession in Newtown. As his practice did not yield him a sufficient income, Dutton took a number of young men who were "on leave of absence" from Yale College into his family to tutor. He continued as a lawyer in Newtown for fourteen years, during which time he obtained a good practice.
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The Governors of Connecticut
In 1837 Dutton removed to Bridgeport, a larger field, and commenting on his career in that city a writer says : " His life in the latter place was one of great professional activity, as will be seen by a reference to the Connecticut reports. The purity of his private life, the eminence of his legal acquirements, and his professional successes gave him a deep hold on the confidence of the community, and he was, in consequence, made a recipient of many public offices."
In 1847 Dutton received an appointment as Kent professor of Law in Yale College. He held the office of state's attorney for Fair- field County, and was also judge of the County Court for one year.
Five times he was a member of the General Assembly; twice each from Newtown and Bridgeport, and once from New Haven. He was also for one session, in 1849, a member of the State Senate.
Dutton was now one of the leading lawyers of the state and retained in all the important cases in Fairfield County.
In 1847 Dutton was appointed with L. P. Waldo and F. Fellowes to revise the Connecticut statutes, and in the following year, in collaboration with N. A. Cowdrey, he published a Revis- ion of Swift's Digest.
According to one eminent authority, to Dutton's "practical sagacity while a member of the Legislature is largely due that fundamental change in our law of evidence permitting parties in interest to testify."
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His father was a true Jeffersonian Democrat, and he had always been a Whig, while his other relatives were members of the old Federal party.
In 1854 Dutton was nominated for governor of the state, but at the spring election no choice was made, so the matter went to the General Assembly. Dutton was promptly elected governor and served for one year. His administration was one of importance.
Retiring from the chief magistracy in 1855, Governor Dutton resumed his law practice. He was chairman of a new commission to make a revision of the statutes, and " advocated the law allowing the prisoner's counsel the right of a closing argument before the jury; introduced in the Legislature the bill giving the superior court sole jurisdiction in divorce cases, and aided in the passage of bills to secure more effectually the rights of married women."
When Judge Ellsworth retired from the bench of the Supreme Court of Errors in 1861, Governor Dutton was appointed to suc- ceed him. This distinguished position he filled with great ability until he reached the age of seventy, when he resigned, and devoted the remaining years of his life to his work in the Yale Law School. He also engaged in general practice to a limited extent until a short time before his death, which occurred at his home in New Haven on April 28, 1869.
Governor Dutton's professional ability is summed up in an able manner in " The Judicial and Civil History of Connecticut,""
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The Governors of Connecticut
as follows: "As an advocate he possessed great power, not only in presenting questions of fact to the jury, but also in the dis- cussion of purely legal questions before the court. His mind was eminently a practical one. Trained by a large and varied experi- ence in the ordinary affairs of life, it discarded many theories, and yet was ready to accept any innovations upon established usage that approved themselves to his common sense."
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The THIRTY-EIGHTH GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT
was
WILLIAM THOMAS MINOR
Born in Stamford, he was graduated from Yale College and studied law in his father's office-Through a legal career he entered politics and became the choice of the Know-Nothing party for the governorship-During the Civil War days he was an outspoken adherent of the Union cause and was appointed by President Lincoln as consul-general to Havana, Cuba, where he gained distinction as a diplomat
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WILLIAM
THOMAS
MINOR
W ILLIAM Thomas Minor, one of the prominent lawyers of his time, was born in Stamford on October 3, 1815. He was the son of Judge Simeon H. Minor, descendant of Thomas Minor, of Pequot, Stonington, 1646, a leading practi- tioner for many years in Fairfield County.
Minor entered Yale College in 1830 at the age of fifteen and was graduated in the class of 1834. Returning to Stamford, he taught school for several years in an institution which he conducted, at the same time pursuing the study of law in his father's office. He was admitted to the bar of Fairfield County in 1841 and com- menced his professional career at once in his native town.
Becoming prominent as a lawyer and citizen, he was repeatedly honored by being elected to various offices. He was chosen judge of probate for the district in 1847, and held the office, with the exception of two years, until 1854. Minor was elected a member of the General Assembly from Stamford, 1841, 1842, 1843, 1844, 1846, 1847, 1852, seven times, and in 1854 was chosen from the twelfth district as a state senator.
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The Governors of Connecticut
During the session of the Legislature he was elected judge of the Fairfield County Court. He held this position only a short time, for in 1855 Minor was the choice of the Know-Nothing party for governor, and was nominated for the office. The election which followed was so close that the contest went to the General Assembly for settlement. That body elected Minor governor of the state, and he was re-elected the following year by the people. His administration was very satisfactory, and Governor Minor proved to be a popular chief magistrate.
He continued his law practice after retiring from office, and his great interest in it was not abated. As the clouds of the Civil War gathered Governor Minor was an outspoken adherent of the Federal cause, and by his timely assistance and influence rendered valuable service to the state and the nation. He helped the author- ities in raising troops, equipping them, and transporting them to the seat of war.
Governor Minor was a warm supporter of Governor Bucking- ham, and in him the famous "war governor" found a wise counsellor, a true friend to the cause for which they were strug- gling, and a statesman of sterling ability.
In 1864 he was a delegate from Connecticut to the Repub- lican National Convention at Baltimore, and in the fall of the same year was appointed by President Lincoln consul-general to Havana, Cuba. While occupying this position Governor Minor 238
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The Governors of Connecticut
gained national distinction by a shrewd piece of diplomatic work. By superior tact and dogged determination, Minor induced the captain-general of Cuba not only to detain but to ultimately deliver to the United States government the capable rebel ram "Stonewall Jackson." This act was commended on every side and brought Minor much fame as a diplomat. When Andrew Johnson became president, Governor Minor resigned his office, and in May, 1867, returned to Connecticut, and resumed the practice of law in Stamford. One year later he was again elected by the General Assembly a judge of the Superior Court, and he continued on the bench until May, 1873, when he resigned. Retir- ing to private life he soon engaged in his profession again, with the same success as formerly. Governor Minor was nominated for Congress in March, 1873, but was defeated by William H. Bar- num of Salisbury. He was appointed as one of the commissioners in 1879 to permanently settle the much disputed boundary line between New York and Connecticut. Governor Minor was hon- ored in 1855 by Wesleyan College, which institution conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws.
His last days were spent in Stamford, where he had the love and affection of his fellow townsmen. Governor Minor died at Stamford on October 13, 1889, and at the time of his death was the oldest living ex-governor of the state.
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The THIRTY-NINTH GOVERNOR of CONNECTICUT was ALEXANDER HOLLEY
A straightforward business man who believed it his duty to conscientiously participate in civic affairs-He was born in Lakeville, in the town of Salisbury, and began life in his father's store, later entering the field of manu- factures and following an eminently success- ful business career-Elected to the governor- ship because of his integrity, he conducted his political duties on sound business principles
Auf; It. Stollay
2
ALEXANDER
HAMILTON
HOLLEY
A LEXANDER Hamilton Holley was born in the village of Lakeville, town of Salisbury, on August 12, 1804. His name was given in honor of Alexander Hamilton, whose sudden and untimely death a month before Holley's birth was deeply deplored by the whole country.
He was the son of John Milton and Sally (Porter) Holley, residents of Salisbury for many years. His ancestors were men endowed with an uncommon vigor of mind, and possessed much natural ability. The early years of his life were spent attending a school kept by Rev. Orville Dewey at Sheffield, Massachusetts, and later he was sent to a boarding school in Ellsworth, Con- necticut, conducted by Reverend Parker, father of the famous Judge Amasa J. Parker.
He was prepared for Yale College, but on the eve of his entrance to that institution the young man's health failed, which made it impossible for him to even attempt the course. In consequence he left school at the age of sixteen years, and entered his father's store, where he started his long and eminently successful business career.
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Tbe Governors o f Connecticut
He began manufacturing pocket cutlery in 1844 in his native town and continued in business with Nathan W. Merwin until 1854. During the latter year a joint stock company was organized under name of Holley Manufacturing Company, with Alexander Holley as president. He held this position and continued in the business until his death.
Holley was always a Whig in politics, and although he never sought office it came to him quite often. In 1844 he was a delegate to the national convention that nominated Henry Clay for president. He was an ardent admirer of the famous statesman and enjoyed the honor of being the official head of the committee which announced the nomination to Clay.
Becoming popular in Connecticut politics Holley was elected to the first public office of his life in 1854, when he was chosen lieutenant governor of the state. The ability he displayed on the day of his inauguration at New Haven led many to comment on the fact and congratulate themselves on having honored him with the office.
In 1856 he was nominated for governor and elected. His administration, although uneventful, was characterized by the able manner in which he prosecuted the duties of the office. Thor- oughly informed on all the current questions of the day, Governor Holley conducted his political affairs on sound business principles.
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Retiring from office in 1857 he was the following year appointed as the Connecticut representative to be present at the unveiling of
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The Governors of Connecticut
Cranford's statue of Washington at Richmond, Virginia. During the year 1862 he was traveling in Europe and in 1866 Governor Buckingham offered him the position of commissioner from Con- necticut to the World's Fair in Paris. Governor Holley did not accept this honor on account of a recent bereavement in his family. In 1871 Governor Holley made another long visit to Europe, visit- ing all places of interest on the continent.
Returning to Connecticut, he spent the remaining years of his life with his family in Lakeville. About the last occasion on which Governor Holley made a public appearance was at the dedication of the soldiers' monument at New Haven, on May 16, 1887, when he attended the exercises as a guest of honor. In September of the same year he became ill and died on October 2, aged 83 years.
Governor Holley was pre-eminently a business man and amassed a large fortune, but yet as governor of the state he dis- played rare qualities which made his political career a great success.
There was a straight-forwardness in his nature, coupled with an affectionate ardor for those about him, which made him a great favorite with the public. He was strongly opposed to slavery and to all parties that upheld the institution.
The friends of temperance found in Governor Holley a strong supporter, as his dislike for the liquor traffic was exemplified in word and deed.
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The FORTIETH GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT
was WILLIAM A. BUCKINGHAM
A Lebanon boy who first became a surveyor and then worked on his father's farm-Going to Norwich, he entered his uncle's dry goods store, and later became a prosperous merchant and manufacturer-As a vigorous figure in the slave days he became a leader of the abolitionists, a supporter and intimate friend of Lincoln, and chief executive of Connecticut during the Civil War, inspiring the common- wealth to a patriotism that has become histori- cal record-During the reconstruction he was a dominant force in the United States Senate
Nº CBuckingham
WILLIAM
ALFRED
BUCKINGHAM
G L OVERNOR Buckingham was one of the "war governors" on whom President Lincoln leaned to a large extent dur- ing the Civil War, and, like Jonathan Trumbull nearly a century before, he had the patriotic love and support of the people of this state. Although a civilian by nature and early training, he developed into one of the most distinguished governors Connecticut ever had and shed lustre on this commonwealth during one of its darkest periods.
Lebanon is a small old-fashioned town on the Hartford and Norwich stage road, but it has furnished five able governors to the state. In this town on May 28, 1804, was born William Alfred Buckingham. His ancestors were among members of Davenport's colony that settled New Haven, and his father, Deacon Bucking- ham, was a native of Saybrook, who afterwards removed to Lebanon.
The young man attended the district schools in Lebanon, and later became a student at Bacon's Academy in Colchester, where he prepared for the profession of a land surveyor. After a brief trial
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The Governors of Connecticut
in this work he returned to his father's farm in Lebanon and remained for three years. Going to Norwich he entered a dry goods store conducted by his uncle in that city, with a determina- tion to learn the business. This seemed to suit him so well that in 1826 Buckingham opened a store of his own, and began to lay the foundation of the fortune which was to exert such a beneficent influence in future years.
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