Calvin Stewart Brice (September 17, 1845 – December 15, 1898) was an American businessman and
Democratic politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
from
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
. He is best remembered for his single term in the United States Senate, his role as chairman of the
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the governing body of the United States Democratic Party. The committee coordinates strategy to support Democratic Party candidates throughout the country for local, state, and national office, as well a ...
, and his formative role in the American rail industry. He was a leading
Bourbon Democrat
Bourbon Democrat was a term used in the United States in the later 19th century (1872–1904) to refer to members of the Democratic Party who were ideologically aligned with fiscal conservatism or classical liberalism, especially those who suppo ...
.
Early life
Calvin Brice was born on September 17, 1845 to William Kirkpatrick and Elizabeth Stewart Brice in
Denmark, Ohio. His father was a
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
minister of no great wealth. He was home-schooled for a time before entering the Columbus Grove public school system in
Putnam County. After showing some promise as a student, Brice gained admission to Miami University in 1859.
Brice's first attempt to join the army in 1861 met with little success, after being turned down because of his young age. In the summer of 1862, however, Brice enlisted and served three months in the
86th Regiment of the Ohio Volunteer Infantry, seeing action in West Virginia.
In 1863, he returned to and graduated from Miami University with high honors
[Mach, ''American National Biography Online''] and worked as a schoolmaster, before he joined the army again in 1864, this time serving as captain to a company of volunteers he recruited for the
180th Ohio Infantry. Brice rose rapidly through the ranks of the Union Army and, by the end of the war, attained the position of Lieutenant-Colonel.
With "no desire for an army career," according to historian Thomas Mach, Brice ended his military career soon after to pursue a career in law. He earned his law degree from the
University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a Public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of C ...
in 1865 and passed the Ohio bar in 1866.
Business career
Brice found his break into both the business and political worlds under unusual circumstances. Around 1880, with his law practice proving unsuccessful and his mother's home at risk of foreclosure, Brice offered to attend to any legal interests with which the mortgage lender needed help. The lender, then-Governor
Charles Foster, declined the legal help but offered to pay Brice five hundred dollars to negotiate a business deal with
Wall Street
Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...
on his behalf.
Brice accepted and proved a shrewd businessman; Ignoring Foster's explicit instructions for his work on the business proceedings in New York and instead following his instincts, Brice returned with a shocking profit of $40,000 and earned the trust and friendship of the Governor.
Foster would later name Brice "the most remarkable man
eever met
€¦the most successful borrower
eever saw." Throughout his business career, two themes were consistent: Brice's ability to restructure a failing or fledgling business to turn a profit and his involvement with Charles Foster, whose support was crucial to Brice's success.
After working in private practice, Brice joined the legal department of the
Lake Erie and Louisville Railroad
The Fremont and Indiana Railroad existed in Northwest Ohio beginning in 1853.
Origin
The Fremont and Indiana Railroad Company was incorporated April 25, 1853 by L. Q. Rawson, Sardis Birchard, James Justice, John R. Pease, and Charles W. Foster. T ...
. There, he gained his initial experience in the railroad industry, learning how to operate, fund, and expand a rail network. In 1871, Brice traveled to Europe to secure funding for a foundering railway running from Toledo to Ohio's coal fields, impressing Foster once more. With Foster's support, Brice guided the railroad through the
Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 was a financial crisis that triggered an economic depression in Europe and North America that lasted from 1873 to 1877 or 1879 in France and in Britain. In Britain, the Panic started two decades of stagnation known as the "Lon ...
and expanded it into
Lima
Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, RÃmac River, RÃmac and LurÃn Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
and the surrounding region. His most notable achievement was perhaps his role in the 1882 construction of the
Nickel Plate Road
The New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad , abbreviated NYC&St.L, was a railroad that operated in the mid-central United States. Commonly referred to as the "Nickel Plate Road", the railroad served parts of the states of New York (state), Ne ...
which ran from New York to St. Louis. He later sold this road for a generous profit to
William Henry Vanderbilt
William Henry Vanderbilt (May 8, 1821 – December 8, 1885) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was the eldest son of Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt, an heir to his fortune and a prominent member of the Vanderbilt family. Vanderbi ...
, who recognized it as a dangerous competitor. Brice rose to President of the company in 1887, which by then was known as the
Lake Erie and Western Railroad
The Lake Erie and Western Railroad was a railroad that operated in Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. The Lake Erie and Western Depot Historic District at Kokomo, Indiana, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.
The beginning
...
.
Over time, Brice netted a great fortune, laying claim to ten different railroads while spreading into numerous other businesses, including the National Telegraph Company and the Chase National Bank of New York.
Later in life, Brice became involved with railroad projects in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. He was a founding member of the American Asiatic Association, an organization responsible for pursuing American trade interests in China under the
Open Door Policy
The Open Door Policy () is the United States diplomatic policy established in the late 19th and early 20th century that called for a system of equal trade and investment and to guarantee the territorial integrity of Qing China. The policy wa ...
. In the late 1890s, he began an attempt to build a railroad between
Canton and
Hankou
Hankou, alternately romanized as Hankow (), was one of the three towns (the other two were Wuchang and Hanyang) merged to become modern-day Wuhan city, the capital of the Hubei province, China. It stands north of the Han and Yangtze Rivers wher ...
on Mainland China,
but he died before the project was completed.
Throughout his career, Brice remained selfless in his aims and frugal in his desires, unlike most of the so-called
robber barons of his day. According to historian James White, Brice did not accept much compensation for his services during a business transaction and often held himself accountable to the public by "stripping a proposition of every incumbrance and laying it bare for inspection."
Political career
![Senator Calvin Brice](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Senator_Calvin_Brice.jpg)
Alongside his business career, Brice played an increasing role in state and national politics. He was a conservative
Bourbon Democrat
Bourbon Democrat was a term used in the United States in the later 19th century (1872–1904) to refer to members of the Democratic Party who were ideologically aligned with fiscal conservatism or classical liberalism, especially those who suppo ...
. Brice got his start in politics as an elector for
Samuel J. Tilden
Samuel Jones Tilden (February 9, 1814 – August 4, 1886) was an American politician who served as the 25th Governor of New York and was the Democratic candidate for president in the disputed 1876 United States presidential election. Tilden was ...
in 1876 and later worked for the successful 1884 presidential campaign of
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
.
DNC Chair
After Cleveland's election, Brice became more active in the Democratic Party and was elected as a delegate-at-large to the 1888 Democratic National Convention in St. Louis. In 1889, Brice was chosen to replace the late
William H. Barnum as Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. His wealth and connections made him an influential party chairman, earning him the nickname "Calvin $ellars Brice".
He served until 1892, when was replaced in that position by William Harrity of Pennsylvania after expressing doubts about nominating
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
for a third time.
U.S. Senator
In 1890, Brice won the nomination over
John A. McMahon
John A. McMahon (February 19, 1833 – March 8, 1923) was a three-term United States Representative from Ohio from 1875 to 1881. He was the nephew of Clement Vallandigham, another Representative from Ohio.
Biography
McMahon was born in Fre ...
as his party's candidate to succeed George H. Payne, the outgoing U.S. Senator from Ohio. Brice was subject to media criticism, including over claims that he was not an Ohio resident, having lived in New York in the previous years.
[''The Democratic party of the state of Ohio'']
Thomas Edward Powell. Ohio publishing company, 1913. p. 375-377. Retrieved March 4, 2017 Heavy campaign spending secured the election of a Democratic majority to the
Ohio General Assembly
The Ohio General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio. It consists of the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives and the 33-member Ohio Senate. Both houses of the General Assembly meet at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus ...
, enabling Brice's selection. Because of suspicious circumstances deriving from Payne's initial selection, though, Brice was scrutinized by the Senate before assuming office.
Although Brice enacted few memorable measures as Senator, he gained a reputation as a hard-working and intelligent member, serving as Chairman of the Committee on Pacific Railroads and member of the Democratic Steering Committee and Committee on Appropriations.
Brice's reversal on the critical issue of
tariff reform
The Tariff Reform League (TRL) was a protectionist British pressure group formed in 1903 to protest against what they considered to be unfair foreign imports and to advocate Imperial Preference to protect British industry from foreign competition. ...
cost him the support of many in his Democratic base. Brice's strong ties to New York businesses led some in Ohio to call him "New York's Third Senator". Though Brice fended off a censure motion at the 1894 Democratic party state convention, he lost his bid for reelection to Republican
Joseph B. Foraker
Joseph Benson Foraker (July 5, 1846 – May 10, 1917) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the 37th governor of Ohio from 1886 to 1890 and as a United States senator from Ohio from 1897 until 1909.
Foraker was ...
three years later. After his defeat, Brice dropped out of Ohio politics.
Death
He died suddenly and unexpectedly in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
of an acute attack of pneumonia on December 15, 1898.
Legacy
The mining town of
Briceville, Tennessee
Briceville is an unincorporated community in Anderson County, Tennessee, United States. It is included in the Knoxville, Tennessee Metropolitan Statistical Area. The community is named for railroad tycoon and one-term Democratic U.S. Senator C ...
, which he proved instrumental in helping to connect to railroad service, is named for him.
Brice was a devoted alumnus of Miami University later in life. His efforts in 1885 and 1888 to provide funding for the University were largely responsible for its survival, and a
science
Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
building, Brice Hall was named in his honor. It has since been demolished.
See also
*
New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
The New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad , abbreviated NYC&St.L, was a railroad that operated in the mid-central United States. Commonly referred to as the "Nickel Plate Road", the railroad served parts of the states of New York, Pennsylvan ...
*
List of United States senators from Ohio
Ohio was admitted to the Union on March 1, 1803, and elects U.S. senators to Class 1 and Class 3. Its current U.S. senators are Democrat Sherrod Brown (serving since 2007) and Republican Rob Portman (serving since 2011), making it one of seven ...
*
Briceville, Tennessee
Briceville is an unincorporated community in Anderson County, Tennessee, United States. It is included in the Knoxville, Tennessee Metropolitan Statistical Area. The community is named for railroad tycoon and one-term Democratic U.S. Senator C ...
References
Bibliography
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Brice, Calvin S.
1845 births
1898 deaths
People from Morrow County, Ohio
American Presbyterians
Democratic Party United States senators from Ohio
Democratic National Committee chairs
Ohio Democrats
19th-century American politicians
19th-century American railroad executives
Miami University alumni
University of Michigan Law School alumni
People of Ohio in the American Civil War
Union Army officers
Deaths from pneumonia in New York City
Bourbon Democrats