Charles William Frederick Dick (November 3, 1858 – March 13, 1945) was a

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 ...

politician 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 served in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

and

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

Early life

Born in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County, Ohio, Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 C ...

, his parents were Gottlieb Dick (a Scots/German immigrant), and Magdalena or "Lena" (Von Handel) Dick, who immigrated to the United States from

Heidelberg, Germany Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

. On June 30, 1881, Dick married Carrie May Peterson, the daughter of Dr. James Holman Peterson and Caroline Van Evera. They had five children. James, Lucius, Carl, Grace (Mrs. Edgar Williams) and Dorothy (Mrs. William Robinson). Dick was a Scottish Rite

Mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cut ...

Odd Fellow The Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) is a non-political and non-sectarian international fraternal order of Odd Fellowship. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Wildey in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Evolving from the Order of Odd ...

, and Knight of Pythias.

Career

Early career

"Charley" Dick was educated in Akron, and worked at several stores and banks. In 1886, he was the successful Republican nominee for Summit County Auditor, and he was re-elected in 1888. He also

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

, and was admitted to the bar in 1894. Dick was a delegate to the

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...

1896 Events January–March * January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end, as Jameson surrenders to the Boers. * January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. * January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports that Wil ...

and

1900 Republican National Convention The 1900 Republican National Convention was held June 19 to June 21 in the Exposition Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Exposition Auditorium was located south of the University of Pennsylvania, and the later Convention Hall was constr ...

s. He was elected Chairman of the Ohio Republican Party in 1887 and 1891, and served as the Secretary of the Republican National Committee from 1896 to 1900.

Military career

In November 1885 Dick joined the Ohio Army National Guard as a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

in Company B, 8th Ohio Infantry Regiment, and he was commissioned as a first lieutenant a few days later. His regiment volunteered for service in the Spanish–American War, and Dick served in Cuba as a

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

and

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

. He continued his military service after the war, and attained the rank of major general as head of the Ohio National Guard. From 1902 to 1909 he was president of the

National Guard Association of the United States The National Guard Association of the United States was founded in 1878 as a congressional lobbying organization for National Guard issues. A member of the Military Coalition, NGAUS lobbies on behalf of 45,000 officers who comprise the membership ...

Congressional career

He was elected to the

by a special election in 1898 to fill a vacancy created by the death of Stephen A. Northway, serving the . Dick was Chairman of the Militia Committee, and sponsored the Militia Act of 1903 (the Dick Act). This act codified the circumstances under which the National Guard in each state could be federalized, provided federal resources for equipping and training the National Guard, and required National Guard units to organize and meet the same readiness requirements as the regular Army. Dick served until he resigned in 1904, having been elected to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

to fill the vacancy created by the death of Marcus A. Hanna. In the Senate he served as chairman of the Mining Committee and the Committee on Indian Depredations. He also was the head of a Congressional Committee which investigated hazing at the United States Military Academy. He served until 1911, when he lost a bid for a second term. While in Congress, he became one of the largest stockholders in the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, and served as a vice president and member of the

board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

Later career

Dick practiced law after leaving the Senate, and pursued a successful business career, including ownership of the Franklin Square Hotel in Washington, D.C. and the Hotel Chatham in New York City. He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House in 1918, losing to Martin L. Davey. In 1922 he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, losing to

Simeon D. Fess Simeon Davison Fess (December 11, 1861December 23, 1936) was a Republican politician and educator from Ohio, United States. He served in the United States House of Representatives (1915 to 1923) and U.S. Senate (1923 to 1935). Early life Born on ...

Retirement, death and burial

From 1941 until his death in Akron on March 13, 1945, Dick was the oldest living former US Senator. He was buried in Akron's Glendale Cemetery.

Legacy

Since 1988 the

presents the annual

Charles Dick Medal of Merit The Charles Dick Medal of Merit is awarded by the National Guard Association of the United States The National Guard Association of the United States was founded in 1878 as a congressional lobbying organization for National Guard issues. A memb ...

to recognize support for the National Guard by state and federal legislators.National Guard Association of the United States
Charles Dick Medal of Merit
, 2012

References

External links

Retrieved on 2009-05-16 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dick, Charles W. F. 1858 births 1945 deaths Politicians from Akron, Ohio Ohio lawyers County auditors in the United States Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio Republican Party United States senators from Ohio American military personnel of the Spanish–American War National Guard (United States) generals Ohio National Guard personnel United States Army generals American people of German descent American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law