Elisha Dyer (July 20, 1811 – May 17, 1890) was an American politician and the 25th
Governor of Rhode Island
The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, o ...
.
Early life
Dyer was born in
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...
on July 20, 1811 to an old
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
family which traced its Dyer ancestry back to
William Dyer who came to Boston in 1635 from London.
Dyer's father was an extensive real estate owner also named Elisha Dyer (1772–1854), and his mother was Francis Dunn (
née
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Jones) Dyer (1782–1873).
Elisha Dyer entered
Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
at age fourteen, and graduated in 1829.
After completing his studies, he worked in his father’s mercantile business, Elisha Dyer and Co.
Career
During his life, he was variously associated with the
Temperance Party, the
Whig Party, and the
Republican Party.
For example, he was a member of the Whig State Convention in 1851-1855.
In 1840, Dyer was elected Adjutant General of Rhode Island. He held that position for five years. He then served on the Providence School Committee for over a decade.
From May 26, 1857 to May 31, 1859, Dyer served as the
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 ...
governor of Rhode Island
The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, o ...
.
During the Civil War, Dyer was the captain of Company B of the
10th Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry. He served on active duty from May 23 to September 1, 1862 in the defenses of Washington, D.C.
Later life
He was appointed Rhode Island’s commissioner to the International Exhibition at London in 1871. He also was President and Director of the Exchange Bank and Second Vice President of the Rhode Island Art Association, and a member of the United States Agricultural Society. Dyer became a member of the
Rhode Island Historical Society
The Rhode Island Historical Society is a privately endowed membership organization, founded in 1822, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and sharing the history of Rhode Island. Its offices are located in Providence, Rhode Island.
History
Found ...
in 1837, and served on their board of trustees from 1845-1848.
He was a director of the
Swan Point Cemetery
Swan Point Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Established in 1846 on a 60-acre (0.24 km2) plot of land, it has approximately 40,000 interments.
History
The cemetery was first organ ...
in 1860. He was a member and director of the
Providence Athenaeum
The Providence Athenaeum is an independent, member-supported subscription library in the College Hill neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. The building is open to the public, but only members can check out items from the collection.
The ...
.
He was also an active member of the
Freemasons
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
br>
On March 5, 1884, Dyer was elected as a Veteran Companion of the Massachusetts Commandery of the
Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States
The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...
and was issued insignia number 3163.
In later life, Dyer became an invalid.
Still, he managed to travel extensively across the Atlantic, even visiting Egypt.
He also became a popular public speaker.
Personal life
Dyer married Anna Jones Hoppin, daughter of Thomas C. Hoppin, at the
Beneficent Congregational Church in Providence, on October 8, 1833.
Anna came from a political family; her grandfather was Governor
William Jones and her cousin was Governor
William W. Hoppin
William Warner Hoppin (September 1, 1807 – April 19, 1890) was the 24th Governor of Rhode Island from 1854 to 1857.
Early life
Hoppin was a native of Providence, Rhode Island. He graduated from the Hopkins School in 1824 and then went to Yal ...
.
Elisha and Anna had seven children, including:
*
Elisha Dyer, Jr.
Elisha Dyer Jr. (November 29, 1839November 29, 1906) was a Rhode Island politician who was 45th Governor of Rhode Island from 1897 to 1900. He was the son of Elisha Dyer, Governor of Rhode Island from 1857 to 1859.
Early life
Dyer was born i ...
(1839–1906), who also became governor of Rhode Island, serving from 1897 to 1900.
Dyer was a member of the
Episcopal Church, and attended the
Grace Church in Providence.
He died on May 17, 1890 and is interred in
Swan Point Cemetery
Swan Point Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Established in 1846 on a 60-acre (0.24 km2) plot of land, it has approximately 40,000 interments.
History
The cemetery was first organ ...
in Providence, Rhode Island.
Legacy
Industrialist Daniel Wanton Lyman commissioned a bronze statue "The Falconer" as a memorial to Dyer. The statue was designed by
Henry Hudson Kitson
Henry Hudson Kitson (April 9, 1863, 1864 or 1865 – June 26, 1947) was an English-American sculptor who sculpted many representations of American military heroes.
Romania's Queen Elisabeth knighted him after he sculpted a marble bust of h ...
and installed in
Roger Williams Park
Roger Williams Park is an elaborately landscaped city park in Providence, Rhode Island and a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is named after Roger Williams, the founder of the city of Providence and the pr ...
in 1893.
The Elisha Dyer Camp No. 7 of the Rhode Island Department of the
Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) is an American congressionally chartered fraternal organization that carries out activities to preserve the history and legacy of the United States Armed Forces veterans who fought during the Civil ...
is named in his and his son's honor.
References
Further reading
*Sobel, Robert and John Raimo. ''Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978''. Greenwood Press, 1988.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dyer, Elisha
1811 births
1890 deaths
Brown University alumni
Governors of Rhode Island
Rhode Island Republicans
Burials at Swan Point Cemetery
Republican Party governors of Rhode Island
Rhode Island Whigs
19th-century American politicians
Dyer family