Horace Fairbanks (March 21, 1820 – March 17, 1888) was an American politician and the
36th governor of Vermont
The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...
from 1876 to 1878.
Biography
Fairbanks was born in
Barnet, Vermont, on March 21, 1820, the third of nine children of
Erastus Fairbanks
Erastus Fairbanks (October 28, 1792November 20, 1864) was an American manufacturer, Whig politician, a founder of the Republican Party, and the 21st and 26th governor of Vermont.
Biography
Fairbanks was born in Brimfield, Massachusetts, to Ph ...
and Lois (Crossman) Fairbanks.
He was educated at schools in
Peacham and
Lyndon
Lyndon may refer to:
Places
* Lyndon, Alberta, Canada
* Lyndon, Rutland, East Midlands, England
* Lyndon, Solihull, West Midlands, England
United States
* Lyndon, Illinois
* Lyndon, Kansas
* Lyndon, Kentucky
* Lyndon, New York
* Lyndon, Ohio
* ...
, Vermont, and
Meriden, New Hampshire
Meriden is an unincorporated community in the eastern part of the town of Plainfield in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. Meriden is home to Kimball Union Academy, a private boarding school. New Hampshire Route 120 passes through t ...
, and completed his education at
Phillips Academy in
Andover, Massachusetts
Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 387. As of th ...
.
Career
In 1840, Fairbanks became a confidential clerk at
E. & T. Fairbanks & Co. his family's
St. Johnsbury business, which became famous as the maker of the first platform scale.
He became a partner in 1843 and later became the company's president.
Fairbanks was active in several other business ventures, including construction of the
Portland and Ogdensburg Railway
The Portland & Ogdensburg Railroad was a railroad planned to connect Portland, Maine to Ogdensburg, New York. The plan failed, and in 1880 the Vermont section was reorganized and leased by the Boston & Lowell Railroad. In 1886, the Maine and Ne ...
from
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...
to
Ogdensburg, New York
Ogdensburg ( moh, Kaniatarahòn:tsi) is a city in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 10,436 at the 2019 census. In the late 18th century, European-American settlers named the community after American land owner and de ...
.
Fairbanks was president of the Vermont division of the railroad and president of the First National Bank of St. Johnsbury.
Fairbanks was a delegate to the Republican National Conventions of
1864 and
1868
Events
January–March
* January 2 – British Expedition to Abyssinia: Robert Napier leads an expedition to free captive British officials and missionaries.
* January 3 – The 15-year-old Mutsuhito, Emperor Meiji of Jap ...
.
In 1868, Fairbanks also one of Vermont's electors in the
1872 presidential election.
In 1869 he was elected to the
Vermont State Senate
The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members. Senate districting divides the 30 members into three single-member districts, six two-m ...
;
He served one term, but illness prevented him from attending sessions regularly.
He was a delegate to the
1872 Republican National Convention.
In 1871 Fairbanks presented to St. Johnsbury the
St. Johnsbury Athenaeum
The St. Johnsbury Athenaeum (often written ''St. Johnsbury Athenæum'') is a combined library and art gallery, in St. Johnsbury, Vermont. The building in which it is housed is architecturally and historically significant because of its construction ...
, which includes a
public library and an
art gallery.
He was a trustee of the
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the United ...
and
Phillips Academy.
Elected
Governor of Vermont
The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...
in 1876, Fairbanks served a two-year term.
Fairbanks died in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
on March 17, 1888.
He is interred at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in St. Johnsbury.
Family
Fairbanks married Mary E. Taylor (1824-1901) on August 9, 1840.
They were the parents of three children, Helen, Agnes, and Isabel.
Fairbanks was the brother of
Franklin Fairbanks, who served as
Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives
The Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives is the Speaker or presiding officer of the Vermont House of Representatives, the lower house of the Vermont Legislature.
The Speaker presides over sessions of the Houses, recognizes members s ...
.
References
External links
*
Horace Fairbanksat The Political Graveyard
Horace Fairbanksat National Governors Association
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fairbanks, Horace
1820 births
1888 deaths
Phillips Academy alumni
Republican Party Vermont state senators
Republican Party governors of Vermont
People from St. Johnsbury, Vermont
People from Barnet, Vermont
19th-century American politicians
19th-century American philanthropists
19th-century American businesspeople