Alfred Beard Kittredge (March 28, 1861May 4, 1911) was a

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

Early life and education

Kittredge was born in

Nelson, New Hampshire Nelson is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 629 at the 2020 census, down from 729 at the 2010 census. Nelson includes the village of Munsonville. History Originally named "Monadnock No. 6", the town ...

, the son of Russell H. Kittredge, a physician, and Laura Frances (Holmes) Kittredge. He was raised and educated in

Jaffrey, New Hampshire Jaffrey is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,320 at the 2020 census. The main village in town, where 3,058 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Jaffrey census-designated place (CDP) a ...

. Kittredge graduated from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in 1882 and studied law with

Wheelock G. Veazey Wheelock Graves Veazey (December 5, 1835 – March 22, 1898) was an American attorney, judge, and government official. Veazey served as a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, and as a member of the Interstate Commerce Commission. During the Ameri ...

Rutland, Vermont Rutland, Vermont may refer to: *Rutland (city), Vermont * Rutland (town), Vermont *Rutland County, Vermont *West Rutland, Vermont West Rutland is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,214 at the 2020 census. The t ...

and at the firm of Bachelder and Faulkner in

Keene, New Hampshire Keene is a city in, and the County seat, seat of Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 23,047 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 23,409 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Keene is ho ...

. He then attended

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

, from which he graduated in 1885. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1885 and commenced practice in

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...

. While establishing himself as an attorney, Kittredge became the Sioux Falls correspondent for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, a leading

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

newspaper, which enabled him to develop personal and professional contacts that proved useful during his political career.

Political career

, Kittredge served as chairman of the party in

Minnehaha County Minnehaha County is a county on the eastern border of the state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 197,214, making it the state's most populous county. It contains over 20% of the state's population. Its county seat is S ...

. He was twice elected to the

South Dakota Senate The Senate is the upper house of the South Dakota Legislature. It consists of 35 members, one representing each legislative district; it meets at the South Dakota State Capitol in Pierre. Composition :''92nd Legislature (2019)'' Officers Li ...

, and served from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

from 1892 to 1899. In 1901, Kittredge was appointed to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of

James H. Kyle James Henderson Kyle (February 24, 1854July 1, 1901) was an American politician. One of the most successful members of the Populist Party (United States), Populist Party, he served for 10 years as a member of the United States Senate from South ...

. He was elected to a full term in 1903, and served from July 11, 1901 to March 3, 1909. While in the Senate, he was chairman of the Select Committee on Standards, Weights and Measures ( 57th Congress), the Committee on Patents ( 58th and 59th Congresses), and the Committee on Interoceanic Canals (

60th Congress The 60th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1907, to M ...

). His committee on canals was in part responsible for the selection of

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

over

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

as the location for construction of a canal between the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

and

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

Oceans. Kittredge was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1908. After leaving the Senate, he resumed the practice of law in Sioux Falls.

Later life

In his later years, Kittredge's weight exceeded 300 pounds, and he began to experience health problems. In October 1910, he became chronically ill after overexerting himself while walking from the courthouse to his offices in cold weather. His doctors recommended that he end his law practice and business affairs, and Kittredge returned to Jaffrey to live in retirement.

Death and burial

In February 1911, Kittredge traveled to

Hot Springs, Arkansas Hot Springs is a resort city in the state of Arkansas and the county seat of Garland County. The city is located in the Ouachita Mountains among the U.S. Interior Highlands, and is set among several natural hot springs for which the city is n ...

in hopes of recovering his health. He continued to decline, and became comatose in late April. He died in Hot Springs on May 4, 1911. He was buried at Conant Cemetery in

. Kittredge never married, and had no children.

References

Sources

Internet

Newspapers

* *

Books

* *

External links

* * 1861 births 1911 deaths People from Nelson, New Hampshire Republican Party United States senators from South Dakota Republican Party South Dakota state senators Politicians from Sioux Falls, South Dakota 19th-century American politicians South Dakota lawyers Yale College alumni 19th-century American lawyers {{SouthDakota-politician-stub